Boston Red Sox lefthander Chris Sale, on the injured list with elbow inflammation, will meet with noted orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews on Monday.
Sale and Brad Pearson, the team’s head trainer, will visit with Andrews in Gulf Breeze, Fla., for an examination of the pitcher’s left elbow.
Manager Alex Cora said Sunday morning that Sale didn’t have visits scheduled with any other doctors, and he added that Sale wanted to know more about his diagnosis before talking to the media.
“He’ll be back Tuesday,” Cora said. “I actually just talked to him. He just wants to make sure he has all the facts before he talks to you guys. He wants to see where we’re at with it and all the opinions that he wants to get, and then he goes from there. It’s not that he’s hiding from you guys. He just wants to be straight up and have all the information when he talks to you guys, which I think is fair.”
Cora said that he has not decided who will fill Sale’s turn in the rotation on Tuesday against the Philadelphia Phillies and added that lefthanded starter David Price, also on the IL, is working toward a return.
The veteran Price has a cyst on his left wrist but threw a bullpen session on Saturday. He is scheduled to throw again on Tuesday and decisions will be made after that.
The Red Sox acquired Sale in a December 2016 trade with the Chicago White Sox and signed him to a five-year, $145 million contract that takes effect next season. He is being paid $15 million this season in the final year of his previous contract.
On the season, he is 6-11 with a 4.40 ERA. If Sale’s year is over, this will be the worst season statistically in the career of the seven-time All-Star since he entered the White Sox rotation in 2012, posting career lows in starts (25), wins (six) and innings (147 1/3) and the highest ERA at 4.40.
For his career, Sale has a 109-73 record (35-23 with Boston) with a 3.03 ERA. He has struck out 2,007 batters in 1,629 2/3 innings over 312 games (232 starts).
