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Boston Red Sox newcomer Chris Sale gave himself mixed reviews after his first spring training performance, an outing that ended a little earlier than originally planned.
Acquired from the Chicago White Sox in December, the dominant lefty gave up two runs, one of them earned, in two innings Monday against Houston.
"Happy? I don't know," he said. "I got some good work in. I'm not a fan of sitting here and saying spring training doesn't matter. You still want to get results."
Boston manager John Farrell had Sale set to go three innings. But after 37 pitches in two innings, Farrell decided the debut was over.
"I understand why, I mean I racked up a pretty good amount of pitches, which is another thing I'd like to get down," Sale said.
The scoreboard radar gun showed Sale's fastball hitting 97 mph a couple times during the first inning. He struck out two.
"I was a little surprised to see the velocity he had in his first outing," Farrell said. "In a way you kind of think it's a high number for this early in camp, but you can't tell a strong competitor to back off."
The Red Sox traded three minor leaguers and highly touted Yoan Moncada to the White Sox for Sale, a five-time All-Star and the 2015 AL strikeout king.
Sale's addition took on even more importance earlier this spring when lefty ace David Price began experiencing elbow soreness. Price's status for the start of the season remains uncertain.
"I think every player we have has got a certain amount of scrutiny just because it's Boston," Farrell said. "Independent of developments on our roster, health wise or other, Chris Sale is going to draw a lot of attention. Based on what we know of him, I think he'll handle this environment well."
Beltre ready for WBC
Texas third baseman Adrian Beltre said he's OK to join the Dominican Republic for World Baseball Classic.
Beltre played his third game in four days Monday after missing the first week of exhibition games because of a strained left calf, an injury sustained working out at home before reporting to camp.
"Obviously if I'm good enough to play out here, I'm good enough to play," he said. "I would like to represent my country. This is going to be my last WBC that I'm part of."
The 37-year-old Gold Glover planned to stay in Arizona with the Rangers as long as he could to get treatment and more at-bats before joining the defending champion Dominicans in Miami for their opener against Canada Thursday.
Israel upsets S. Korea
In Seoul, South Korea, Scott Burcham's run-scoring infield single in the 10th inning led Israel to a 2-1 upset win over South Korea on Monday in the World Baseball Classic opener. With a victory over Taiwan on Tuesday night, Israel would be in good position to advance to the second round.
First-round games also are being played in Miami, Tokyo and Guadalajara, Mexico. Second-round games will be in San Diego and Tokyo, while the championship round is at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles from March 20-22. The U.S. begins play against Colombia on Friday in Miami. —
Spring training
Monday's games
Baltimore 7, Detroit 2
Boston 5, Houston 5
N.Y. Mets 8, Miami 2
Pittsburgh 13, N.Y. Yankees 1
Minnesota 2, St. Louis 1, 10 innings
Arizona 4, Kansas City 1
San Francisco 3, Cleveland (ss) 2
Milwaukee 14, Cleveland (ss) 4
San Diego 6, Chicago White Sox 5
Chicago Cubs 13, L.A. Angels 10
Colorado 10, L.A. Dodgers 9
Seattle 9, T+exas 0
Tuesday's Florida games (11:05 a.m. MST)
Atlanta vs. Pittsburgh
Boston vs. Washington
Dominican Republic vs. Baltimore
Miami vs. St. Louis
Philadelphia vs. Detroit
Tampa Bay vs. N.Y. Yankees
Canada vs. Toronto
Tuesday's Florida games (1:05 p.m. MST unless noted)
Colorado vs. Texas
Italy vs. Chicago Cubs
Kansas City vs. Cincinnati
San Francisco vs. L.A. Dodgers
Mexico vs. San Diego, 1:10 p.m.
Oakland vs. Arizona, 1:10 p.m.
—
World Baseball Classic
Monday's game
Israel 2, South Korea 1