Chris Sale is coming. Actually, he's already here.
The Red Sox starter, who is now more than 14 months out from his Tommy John surgery, has joined the Red Sox at Fenway Park to continue his comeback from the elbow injury.
"He's gonna be with us this homestead. He might travel with us," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora before his team's 5-3 win over Miami Monday night. "He's throwing a bullpen up open today. I actually talked to him a little bit earlier. He is in a great place; he feels great, he's excited for what happened this weekend, obviously excited about where we are. The way he put it is like, 'Man when I come back, what am I gonna do? I'm throwing the ball well.' You don't have to worry about that. Just get healthy, be ready, and I know he's going to contribute."
Cora added, "I'm happy that he's here. I think it helps him obviously just being around the guys. He's one of the leaders on our team. The way things are going, they're trending up. We're very pleased with the way that the rehab is going."
And if there was any doubt about how Sale has been looking while amping things up in Fort Myers, Red Sox pitching prospect Connor Seabold took to Twitter to offer a first-hand account.
But, make no mistake about it, Sale isn't with the team just to stand around.
"There's a good chance you know there's a good chance he might (throw to hitters), you know, somebody will stand there, and he'll throw," Cora said. "Like I told you the other day, you know, he threw three sliders, and they were very similar to the ones Eduardo (Rodriguez) were throwing in '19 So, yeah, he still got that sense of humor, and like I said, He's in a great place right now.
"He'll be here the whole week. He might travel with us too. So I think (head trainer) Brad (Pearson) wants him around us around him and Damien, and our staff. Obviously, the change of scenery always helps, you know, although he's, he's at home with the family, and he likes that. He likes to be a big-league, you know, quote-unquote, get to the routine see the guys was very helpful for him."