By LARRY FLEISHER
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Boston Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale left Sunday’s game against the New York Yankees after being hit by a line drive in the first inning.
With two outs, Aaron Hicks hit a 106.6 mph line drive off Sale’s hand. The ball was deflected into center field as Gleyber Torres scored to give New York a 3-0 lead.
Sale screamed out in pain, immediately ran off the field and was replaced by Hirokazu Sawamura.
Sale was making his second start since returning from a fractured rib Tuesday at Tampa Bay. He threw 78 pitches in five scoreless innings and threw 24 pitches on Sunday before leaving the game.
During the major league lockout, Sale broke a rib while working out on his own.
Sale, who is signed through 2024 in a five-year, $145 million deal, has thrown just 48 1/3 innings for the Red Sox since the end of the 2019 season.
Last season, he went 5-1 with a 3.16 ERA in nine starts in his return from Tommy John surgery.
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