Chris Sale Shut Down Remainder of Regular Season, Will Avoid Tommy John Surgery

Red Sox ace Chris Sale will avoid Tommy John surgery.

Red Sox ace Chris Sale is avoiding Tommy John surgery, the team announced in a statement Monday.

"Sale was evaluated by Dr. James Andrews [Monday] morning in Pensacola, Florida. Dr. Andrews confirmed that Sale has inflammation in his left elbow and treated it with a platelet-rich plasma injection," Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said in the statement. "Dr. Andrews also recommended a period of shutdown from throwing. Sale will be re-evaluated in six weeks by Dr. Andrews."

The news was first  reported by ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Sale, 30, was placed on the 10-day injured list with left elbow inflammation on Saturday. He was scheduled to spend the team's day off on Monday and sought a second opinion from renowned orthopedic surgeon Andrews. 

This season, Sale is 6-11 with a 4.4 ERA and 218 strikeouts.

The Red Sox took a three-game sweep over the Orioles this weekend to make up ground in the American League wild-card chase. Boston is on a five-game winning streak and has won 7 of its last 10 games. 

The Red Sox take on the Phillies in a two-game midweek series starting Tuesday. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.