It’s time for the Red Sox to be concerned about Chris Sale

The Red Sox don’t need to worry about the AL East race, but Chris Sale’s injury could cost the team dearly during the postseason.

The Boston Red Sox thoroughly deserve to be the AL favorites at the moment. Their murderous lineup can score runs against any pitcher in baseball. Their starting rotation, however, is a little thin. Alex Cora needs a healthy Chris Sale to give his club a chance at postseason success.

That’s precisely why Sale’s nagging shoulder issues should have everyone in the organization on high alert. The Red Sox have placed their ace on the 10 day disabled list due to shoulder inflammation for the second time in as many months. Sale only missed one start when he went on the shelf during July, and team officials are hopeful he’ll only miss one turn in the rotation this time around.

Shoulder injuries are always a cause concern for pitchers. Obviously, the concern should be amplified when a talent like Sale succumbs to shoulder inflammation twice in such a short span of time. Even if he is able to come back quickly, Red Sox officials should strongly consider giving him some extra rest. They need Sale at his best if they’re going to make a strong run at a World Series title.

The talented southpaw leads his rotation in almost every meaningful category. He sports an ERA of 1.97 with 219 strikeouts in just 146 innings pitched. Those numbers make him the current favorite to win the AL Cy Young award. The Red Sox are much less concerned with his candidacy for that prestigious award than they are about his ability to start big playoff games in October.

If you take Sale out of the Boston rotation it starts to look pretty ordinary. David Price has a strong history of October success, but he isn’t the same pitcher he was just a few seasons ago. He’s equally as likely to get shelled as to throw a gem at this point in his career.

Nathan Eovaldi has a lot of talent, but he’s an injury risk himself. He also doesn’t have a large postseason resume to rely on. There’s no way to know if he will elevate his performance or crumble under the intense pressure of the October microscope.

Rick Porcello is the other pitcher Boston will rely on and he’s just been average this season. His ERA of 4.04 shouldn’t cause anyone in the Red Sox organization to believe he can be a postseason ace. He can be a quality third or fourth guy, but he’s not a No. 1 option.

The final point here is that the Red Sox need to be exceedingly cautious with Sale down the stretch. His shoulder inflammation has to be a major worry for everyone in the organization. Losing him would take Boston from AL favorites to pretenders pretty quickly.