Boston Red Sox

Morning sports update: A former MLB pitcher explained his concern at Chris Sale’s drop in velocity

Also: Measuring Brad Marchand's impact, and some Red Sox birthday trivia.

Chris Sale pitching against the Mariners on March 28.

By Hayden Bird

3 minutes to read

The Red Sox beat the Athletics 6-3 on Wednesday night to halt the team’s four-game losing streak.

And the Celtics defeated the Heat 112-102 in Miami, with Gordon Hayward scoring 25 to lead the team.

The concern over Chris Sale: Former closer Brad Lidge, now a co-host on MLB Network Radio’s “Inside Pitch,” had some thoughts on the velocity drop experienced by Chris Sale so far this season. The Red Sox ace, who normally throws in the mid to upper 90s, averaged 89 m.p.h. in his latest start.

“In terms of performance, I think Chris Sale can pitch at 90-92, and you said he was even at 89 a lot,” said Lidge to his co-host. “I think he can still pitch there and be effective, but he can’t be Chris Sale as we’ve come to know and love him, the dominant pitcher who’s going to punch out 14 guys if he’s got stuff going right. He can’t be that guy pitching at that velocity, so you have to be concerned because he just signed that big extension.”

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Sale recently penned a five-year, $145 million contract extension. So far in 2019, Sale is 0-2 with an 8.00 ERA.

“You have to be concerned about where he’s going to be for the rest of this year and then moving forward,” Lidge said. “The velocity came down a little bit last year, and obviously he’s not where he should be right now.”

Lidge is suspicious of the idea that Sale is simply conserving himself in the early part of the season.

“If you’re feeling good, you’re going to let it go. I’ve never heard of a pitcher who is just all of a sudden like, ‘I’m feeling great, but I’m holding everything back until the second half.’ I’ve never heard of that in my life.”

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Red Sox pitching coach Dana LeVangie recently told reporters that Sale isn’t conserving himelf, but is instead building as the season goes along to improve his durability.

“You guys want him to pitch the whole year, or do you want him to go out and throw 100 right now and not be there for his team? He’s building,” LeVangie explained.

Trivia: Blake Swihart hit a home run on his birthday in Wednesday night’s win. What Red Sox player once hit three home runs on his July 23rd birthday? (Answer at the bottom).

Hint(s): Two of the home runs came in the same inning. One was off Tanyon Sturtze, and the other was off Brandon Backe. He then hit the third home run an inning later again off of Backe. Also, his first name is his father’s name backwards.

More from Boston.com:

Brad Marchand’s impact goes beyond points

: Bruins winger Brad Marchand recently crested 100 points for the season. Yet it’s the contributions he makes not only away from games but away from the ice that are also a crucial part of his impact on the playoff-bound Bruins. [The Boston Globe]

Rays reliever Jose Alvarado makes pitching a baseball look like whiffle ball:

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Magic Johnson and Larry Bird:

Greg Popovich got thrown out of the Spurs game after only 63 seconds, but enjoyed a postgame moment with referee Michael Malone.

What Jason Witten had to say about broadcasting: Recently un-retired tight end Jason Witten offered his thoughts on a short-lived career as an analyst on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.

“Certainly, I took a beating,” Witten said. “I’m aware of it. To say, ‘Hey, you didn’t pay attention to it.’ Bullsh*t.” [The Ringer]

On this day: In 1983, NC State upset heavily favored Houston to win the National Championship. Wolfpack coach Jim Valvano raced around the court looking for senior guard Derrick Whittenburg to hug in celebration, only to find “for the first time in ten games, he’s hugging someone else.”

https://youtu.be/ICZ8HO8c9bw

And in 2001, Hideo Nomo (in his Red Sox debut) pitched the first Red Sox no-hitter since Dave Morehead in 1965. It was also the first no-hitter in the history of Camden Yards.

Daily highlight: Kyrie Irving doing his thing.

Trivia answer: Nomar Garciaparra