‘I wouldn’t like me either’: Chris Sale understands, shares fan frustrations with his injuries

"I’ve given these people one full [expletive] year. You kidding me?"

Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale reacts during the ALCS vs. the Astros. Jim Davis/Globe Staff

April 5, 2022

2 minutes to read

Are you a Red Sox fan frustrated with Chris Sale and his frequent injuries?

If so, you and Sale share plenty in common. Sale — who suffered a stress fracture to his rib cage in February — was placed on the 60-day injured list. Per The Boston Globe, an MRI showed the bone is healing, but he will not be available until early June at the earliest.

Sale is more upset about it than anyone else.

“I’m in a [expletive] situation. There’s just no way around that,” Sale said, per Alex Speier. “I’m hurt. And I’m supposed to not be hurt. I’m supposed to be a very big contributing factor to this team.”

The last few years have not been kind to Sale. Most notably, he underwent Tommy John surgery on his 31st birthday in 2020, and the Red Sox struggled in their disastrous COVID-shortened campaign. Sale told Speier negativity “crushed” him after his Tommy John surgery.

“I’ve not done my job for some freakin’ time now,” he told Speier. “Think about it. I had one full year in ‘17. Good year. Three quarters of a year in ‘18, won the World Series — we’ll call that one a great year. In ‘19, had the worst year of my career, ended up getting hurt. In ‘20, COVID, Tommy John. In ‘21, Tommy John, pitched for a quarter of the year and the playoffs. Serviceable at best, I’ll call that. And then now.

“So I’ve been here for six years, I’ve given these people one full [expletive] year. You kidding me? I wouldn’t like me either.”

Sale turned 33 last week. He pitched in six regular-season games last year and went 5-1 after working his way through his minor-league rehab. While he was somewhat lackluster in the postseason, Red Sox fans were excited to see what he could bring to the rotation healthy this season after a surprise trip to the ALCS.

Instead, the opportunity to contribute in the first few months of the season has been yanked away again, and Sale feels like he isn’t pulling his weight with the team.

“But, could be worse,” he told Speier. “I know that’s something that sounds like a copout from fans looking at me, but it’s the truth. That’s what I have to hold onto right now.

“Because if I think that I’m in the worst position in the world, I’m going to get in that mindset, I’m going to be a bad teammate, I’m going to feel sorry for myself, I’m not going to get the work done, so on and so forth.”