Chris Sale Named AL Starter For All-Star Game
(CBS) White Sox ace Chris Sale will be the American League's starting pitcher in the All-Star Game on Tuesday in San Diego, manager Ned Yost of the Royals announced.
A five-time All-Star, this will be Sale's first starting nod in the Midsummer Classic. He received the honor after a strong first half of the season, one in which he leads the majors with 14 wins. Sale's 3.38 ERA ranks 11th in the AL, and his 1.04 WHIP is fourth in the AL.
"I plan on just letting it eat for an inning, just getting after it," Sale told reporters in San Diego. "There are really no repercussions that come from this game other than just having fun and competing. That's all I'm really going to try and do
For some time, Sale had been considered the favorite to start for the AL. His worst start of the season, on Friday against the lowly Braves, had opened up the discussion a bit more, but Indians right-hander Danny Salazar on Sunday announced he'll skip the All-Star Game because of discomfort in his elbow. Salazar had been the other leading candidate to get the nod.
Sale is the third White Sox pitcher to start the All-Star Game. Mark Buehrle did so in 2005 and Esteban Loaiza received the honor in 2003.
The AL manager for the second straight season, Yost said he wanted to start Sale in 2015, but Sale was coming off a Saturday outing in which he threw 115 pitches that didn't leave time for his arm to recover. Sale is likely to just pitch one inning Tuesday.
Fellow White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana is likely to throw the fifth inning for the AL, Yost said. It's his first All-Star berth.
Giants right-hander Johnny Cueto (13-1, 2.47 ERA) will start for the National League. Cubs right-hander Jake Arrieta (12-4, 2.68 ERA) had been an outside candidate for the start, though he hasn't been as consistent as Cueto lately.