Chris Sale's Win Total Has Risen To One After Striking Out 12 Rays
Christopher Allen Sale is three starts into his Red Sox career, and he has been exactly as advertised.
After his first start in Boston, I wrote that Sale was the real deal. White Sox fans lost their minds, thinking that I meant that simply putting on a Red Sox jersey versus a White Sox jersey somehow legitimized him. No. Sale’s always been the real deal. What I meant was that we were watching the first superstar player in quite some time to come to Boston and then immediately deliver on the expectations that were set prior to their debut. We don’t see that very often around here. I sat down and thought about it, and I concluded that Curt Schilling in 2004 was the last player to actually fit that description, which was 13 years and several “superstars” ago.
Making his third start of the season, and his second at Fenway Park, Sale dominated a Tampa Bay Rays lineup that had just pissed all over the reigning Cy Young award winner the night before. Say what you want about the Rays and the team that they have in 2017, but they took poor Pretty Ricky to the woodshed on Friday night for four homers and eight earned runs, and then got taken to that same exact woodshed themselves by Sale on Saturday, who struck out 12 Rays in 7 innings. Last year, Sale didn’t have his first double digit strikeout game until August 3. He’s struck out at least 10 batters in each of his last two starts this year, and his 29 strikeouts lead the majors.
This isn’t going to be much of a storyline this time around because he finally got a win, but the Red Sox still aren’t scoring runs for poor Chris Sale. Through three starts, they’ve scored a grand total of three runs during the 21.2 innings he’s been on the mound. By the grace of God, he has a 1-1 record, not that wins tell the whole story or any of the story for that matter, but he’s pitching his balls off out there and should be 3-0 with this offense. Sale’s 1.25 ERA is fifth best in the American League, as is his 0.74 WHIP. I’d imagine that as the season goes on, this trend of not scoring for Sale will die out eventually. I hope. Please.
By the way, Steven Wright, Eduardo Rodriguez and Porcello right now combine for a 1-3 record, and a 8.23 ERA, 1.80 WHIP. Not great, if we’re being honest. Drew Pomeranz looked really good in his first start, but it’s one start. We’ll see how he does today, but the Red Sox are obviously going to need more than just Sale to not suck.
Like I mentioned before, the Red Sox offense is still piss poor when Sale is on the mound, but Mitch Moreland doesn’t give a fuck who’s on the mound. Could be Sandy Koufax himself, and Moreland don’t give a FUCK! He hammered his first home run of the season in the second inning and then later added his major league-leading ninth double, finishing the game a triple shy of the cycle. That’s nine doubles in nine games for Mitchy Two Bags, in case you’re keeping score at home. Oh, and nine doubles is the most doubles by a Red Sox hitter through the team’s first 11 games since fucking 1913. The sinking of the Titanic was still a touchy subject the last time someone did what Mitchy Two Bags is doing right now.
Also, I’ve been getting chirped for flip-flopping so much on Pablo Sandoval. Here’s the thing about that — when he sucks, I’m gonna write that he sucks. And when he looks good, I’m gonna give him his praise and tell you that he looks good. If anyone’s been flip-flopping, it’s been his performance by having a great spring and a shitty first two weeks, at least statistically.
I’m just calling it how I see it. Right now? Sandoval’s hitting .132 with a .506 OPS, which is the worst among all Red Sox starters. But to be fair, a lot of the outs that he’s making are on hard-hit balls. He’s just been really unlucky to start the year. He’s still been putting some good swings on the ball and making solid contact, but he hasn’t been hitting them where they’re not. At least, not yet. Still campaigning hard for him to give up hitting right-handed, though.
Final score: Red Sox 2, Rays 1