Inside The Pinstripes

Yankees' Aaron Hicks Hits Red Sox Ace Chris Sale With Comebacker

Sale immediately left the game with a broken finger.

Max Goodman

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NEW YORK — Chris Sale just can't catch a break.

Making his second start of the season, after missing the first three-plus months of the year with a right rib stress fracture, the Red Sox left-hander appeared to break his left pinky finger on a comebacker off the bat of Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks in the first inning on Sunday afternoon.

The Red Sox later confirmed that Sale did in fact suffer a fractured fifth finger on that play.

Sale tried to snag the line drive with his glove as he spun on the mound, reacting as quick as he could. Instead, the 106.7-mph liner hit him straight on his hand, bouncing into shallow right field.

Gleyber Torres scored from second base on the play, giving the Yankees an early 3-0 lead over Boston. Two of those three runs were earned and charged to Sale, who allowed two hits in 0.2 frames. 

Sale held up his hand, showing manager Alex Cora and the rest of Boston's dugout the damage as he walked off the mound. He was quickly escorted off the field, immediately leaving the game. 

After several minutes, right-hander Hirokazu Sawamura jogged out from the Red Sox bullpen, taking his time to warm up on the mound in front of a stunned crowd at Yankee Stadium.

It's been a brutal stretch for Sale when it comes to injuries. The ace and perennial Cy Young Award contender missed all of the 2020 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He landed back on the 60-day injured list with a right rib stress fracture in April. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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