A nightmare season continued for Boston Red Sox lefty Chris Sale with the Tampa Bay Rays handing him his fifth loss.
Six starts into his 2019 campaign, Sale is still searching for his first win and he’s already surpassed the number of games he lost a year ago when he went 12-4. Sale had never lost more than two of his first six starts in any previous season of his career. His 6.30 ERA is easily the highest it has ever been this deep into a season.
This dismal stretch seems unfathomable for a pitcher of Sale’s caliber but it’s actually not unprecedented.