There’ll be nowhere for Chris Sale to hide at the circus tent/Tropicana Dome Friday night. No more soft landings for Boston’s $30 million per year ace.
The Red Sox were spanked by the aggressive 100-win Rays, 5-0, in Game 1 of their ALDS series in St. Petersburg, Fla., Thursday. Losing the first game of a best-of-five brings extra pressure and Sale will be carrying that weight to the hill in Game 2.
Perfect. Boston has its big-moment guy for a virtual must-win game.
The Sox made things as easy as possible for Sale when he came back from Tommy John surgery in mid-August. While a COVID surge depleted the Sox clubhouse, Boston’s most famous anti-vaxer started nine games — six of them against last-place teams, including three vs. the Orioles, who were trying to lose. Feasting on a diet of Tomato Cans, Sale compiled a 5-1 record with a 3.16 ERA.
He made only two starts against non-losers, both against the Rays. He was winless in those two games, giving up a whopping 16 hits and three walks in 9⅔ innings. That’s 19 baserunners in 9⅔ innings in his only games against a winning team.
Sunday in Washington Sale let the Sox down in dramatic fashion. In a game the Red Sox had to win, against the last-place Nationals, Sale was pulled in the third inning, leaving his team in a 2-0 hole. He gave up four hits and three walks, while getting only seven outs (all strikeouts). The Nats were all over his changeup. Sale’s teammates bailed him out with a comeback victory.
Ever a stand-up guy, Sale admitted, “I did nothing to help our team win. I actually put us in a horrendous spot in that game.’’
He says he’s been working on his changeup and has figured something out.
“I worked a lot this week,’’ Sale said Thursday. “I was able to work on my mechanics and getting a better arm action and just feeling more comfortable on the mound.’’
Alex Cora is happy to have Sale for Game 2 after Boston’s Game 1 defeat.
“He made a few adjustments that might play tomorrow,’’ said the manager. “I think the slider will be there tomorrow and he is going to give us a chance to win the game.’’
This week marks Boston’s first appearance in the postseason since Sale came out of the bullpen and mowed down the Dodgers in the bottom of the ninth inning of the fifth and deciding game of the 2018 World Series in Los Angeles. The Sox did not qualify for the playoffs in 2019 or 2020, but returned to big-time October ball with a scintillating, 6-2, wild-card win over the Yankees Tuesday at Fenway.
It is what Boston fans have come to expect in this century. Thursday’s Game 1 at the Trop was Boston’s 135th postseason game since 1986. Since Sox Cy Young/MVP Roger Clemens started the first game of the ‘86 ALCS at Fenway, the Sox have played postseason games in Anaheim, New York, Oakland, Cleveland, St. Louis, Chicago, Denver, St. Petersburg, Detroit, Houston, and Los Angeles. Some of the ballparks changed names over the years, as the Sox played October ball at the Big A, Shea Stadium, the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum, Yankee Stadiums I and II, the Jake in Cleveland, Busch Stadium in St. Louis, U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, Coors Field in Denver, Comerica Park in Detroit, Minute Maid Park in Houston, Dodger Stadium, Fenway Park, and (gulp) . . . Tropicana Field — a joke of a major league ballpark.
By any measure, it’s a lot of postseason baseball for one franchise. Much of it is owed to an era of expanded playoffs, but the larger point is that Boston’s baseball team has been competitive for a long, long time and we’ve been blessed with a lot of October baseball. Ask folks in Seattle. They haven’t seen the Mariners in a postseason game in 20 years.
Eduardo Rodriguez, Boston’s Game 1 starter, lasted only 1⅔ innings Thursday, and Cora was forced to use starter Nick Pivetta for 4⅔ innings. Now Boston turns its eyes to Sale.
The Sox’ backs are against the wall for Game 2, but they believe the Chris Sale of old can dig them out of this hole and bring them back to Fenway, 1-1, with Nate Eovaldi scheduled to start Game 3 at Fenway Sunday afternoon at 4.
This should be great theatre. Sale is back in a big game. And the Red Sox need him more than ever.
Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @dan_shaughnessy.
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After a season of soft landings, Chris Sale gets the ball in Game 2 of the ALDS and the Red Sox really need him - The Boston Globe
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