Chris Sale not expected to undergo Tommy John surgery

Chris Sale’s health is a big question mark, but he appears to have avoided the worst case scenario for now.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported on Wednesday that the Boston Red Sox lefty, who recently underwent an MRI after experiencing soreness in his throwing elbow, is not expected to undergo Tommy John surgery at this point.

The 30-year-old Sale, who also battled elbow issues in 2019 en route to a career-worst season where he went 6-11 with a 4.40 ERA, experienced the discomfort earlier this week after his first live batting practice session of the spring. He was already off to a late start after coming down with a case of pneumonia in February.

Sale, the seven-time All-Star, opted for more conservative methods of healing when he had problems with his elbow last year, and the hope now will be that those treatments continue to work for him as we move into 2020.