Red Sox SP Chris Sale to Start Season on Injured List

Sale is behind on his recovery after battling flu and pneumonia in early February.

Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale will start the 2020 season on the Injured List, manager Ron Roenicke announced on Wednesday. 

Sale will miss the season opener as he recovers from the flu and pneumonia. He is still "two weeks behind," in his recovery, according to Roenicke.

The seven-time All-Star struggled mightily in 2019, his third year with the Red Sox. Sale posted a career-worst 4.40 ERA, going 6–11 in 147 1/3 innings. Sale was shut down for the season in August due to a left elbow injury. 

Sale is slated to be in Boston for much of the next decade. He signed a five-year, $150 million contract extension in March 2019, committing to the Red Sox after a dynamic first two seasons in Boston. Sale led the American League in strikeouts in 2017, and he logged five playoff starts for the Red Sox en route to a 2018 World Series title.

The Red Sox finished third in the American League East in 2019 at 84–73. It's been a tumultuous offseason for Boston, as manager Alex Cora was fired and Mookie Betts was traded to Los Angeles.