Hector Velazquez. (Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Red Sox ace Chris Sale's been anything but an ace, with a 3-8 record and 4 ERA through his first 18 starts, so he'll get some extra rest now and won't pitch again until after the All-Star break.
Skipper Alex Cora knows the southpaw must be better, but acknowledged Sale's sluggish starts aren't all on him.
"He's our ace, he's our number one," Cora said. "When he pitched well, we didn't hit. When we hit, he didn't pitch well. It was a combination of both. We're a team, we're not gonna point fingers, say 'it's on him,' or the offense or whatever."
Rubber game tonight in Toronto at 7:07 p.m., after Boston dropped last night's match-up 6-3 for its fourth loss in five games.
Hector Velazquez will start tonight's game. He's started seven games this year and posted a 6.41 ERA; he'll have to contend with a Blue Jays lineup that has scored at least five runs in 13 of the last 14 games.
The righty does have a 1.15 career ERA in eleven appearances against the Blue Jays.
WBZ NewsRadio's Adam Kaufman (@AdamMKaufman) reports