White Sox left-hander Chris Sale said he brought his concerns about pitching in the 1976 throwback uniforms to manager Robin Ventura and pitching coach Don Cooper before he took the drastic steps to destroy them before Saturday’s game. Having never pitched in an untucked jersey in his life, Sale asked the team not to wear those on a night he was to pitch.
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When I saw that there was something in the way of that 100 percent winning mentality, I had an issue.
Robertson got the win in both, though he didn’t feel like he deserved it after that rough ninth in the scheduled game. He continued, “Do I regret saying business should not be first before winning?”
Ventura, who called Sale “emotional”, said the ace remains a leader of the team and said it was “nothing that can’t be smoothed over”. In an interview with MLB.com’s Scott Merkin, Sale laid out the entire timeline of events that led to him defacing the jerseys, talked about not wanting to get traded, and opened up about his frustrations with White Sox higher-ups. The White Sox recorded two walk-off wins in the same day for the first time since October 3, 1991, against the Minnesota Twins. Sale was scratched from his start and later suspended for five games.
Chris Sale confirmed he did not prefer to wear the 1976 White Sox throwback uniforms that were laid out for the players prior to Saturday night’s game.
He was openly critical of team executive Ken Williams during spring training when he said Drake LaRoche, the son of teammate Adam LaRoche, would no longer be allowed in the clubhouse.
“We knew he wasn’t gonna throw today and I don’t expect him to be here today”, Ventura said.
“I’ve seen a lot of insane things happen in the game, but sometimes emotions get the best of us”, he said.
Saturday was hardly the first time that Sale and the White Sox have publicly been at odds. “We’re gonna deal with that internally and we’ll officially discuss that when he gets back here at some point”.
Manager Robin Ventura says he isn’t sure of Sale’s plans while he is away from the team, but he expects him to be ready for the outing at Wrigley Field.
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The White Sox took the scheduled game right after Detroit wiped out a 4-1 deficit in the ninth. “It does not move the needle one iota in terms of his value to the club, his value to any other club that may be interested in his services or the likelihood of his being moved”. But, with rumors running rampant that teams are taking their shots at Sale in negotiations, Hahn stressed the suspension will not affect their plans going forward. Starter Matt Boyd gave up three runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings, and the Tigers came up short after getting a break by not facing the 14-game victor Sale.
