ITPV » After contributing to a franchise-record 108 regular-season wins

In what will go down as one of the easiest decisions of this MLB offseason David Ross Jersey , the Boston Red Sox have picked up pitcher Chris Sale's $15 million option for 2019, the team announced Tuesday. Sale also helped Boston win its ninth World Series title.Since coming over to Boston in December 2016, Sale has been everything the Red Sox have hoped for and more. The hard-throwing southpaw has gone 29-12 with a 2.56 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP in 59 starts over the course of two seasons. He finished second in American League Cy Young award voting during his first season with the team.This year, Sale went 12-4 with a 2.11 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP in 27 starts. He also went 1-0 with a 4.11 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP in five postseason appearances (three starts) as Boston won its first World Series since 2013.Not only did he start Game 1 of the World Series and help the Red Sox beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he also closed out the series by pitching the ninth inning of the clincher:His versatility helped him join some exclusive company, per Baseball Reference:Baseball Reference baseball_refPitchers who got the first and last out of the #worldseries:Babe Adams, 1909Ernie Shore, 1916Art Nehf, 1922Waite Hoyt, 1928Lefty Gomez, 1937Paul Derringer, 1940Spud Chandler, 1943Hal Newhouser, 1945And Chris Sale, 2018Drafted in the first round in 2010 http://www.chicagocubsteamshop.com/authentic-david-ross-jersey , Sale debuted that same year and has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for the better part of a decade. He has been selected to seven consecutive AL All-Star teams and has finished in the top six in AL Cy Young voting every year since he became a starter in 2012, a streak that is likely to continue this year.Part of why the Red Sox acquired Sale was the fact that he was playing out a five-year, $32.5 million deal, which included a pair of team options. While he has certainly outplayed his contract, even more now that he has helped deliver a championship, he has previously denied ever having any regrets about signing the team-friendly deal, as he told Scott Merkin of MLB.com in December 2015:"I've seen it since then, just kind of going crazy and not one part of me, and I'm being as honest as I can possibly be, there's not one part of me that is upset, sad, whatever you want to call it. Not one bit of me feels that way. I knew exactly what I was getting into at the time I was getting into it, and I could not have asked for anything more."He echoed similar sentiments on WEEI's KirkCallahan in February:"I don't worry about that crap, honestly. I have one thing to do, right? Play baseball. Pitch. Be a good teammate. Those are all kind of all wrapped into one thing as what I am as a pitcher. I am not an agent. I am not an owner. I am not a general manager, so I know basically nothing about contracts. If and when that happens Drew Smyly Jersey , all of them can take care of that. I am worried about baseball."It's possible Sale and the Red Sox could agree on an extension before Opening Day, but as of now, he will enter the 2019 season in the final year of his contract. That would give him a chance to test free agency at 30 years old. WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A quirk in Houston’s early spring training schedule will force manager A. J. Hinch to use veteran stars such as outfielders George Springer and Michael Brantley earlier than he’d like.Hinch isn’t pleased that his Astros will play split-squad games — at the New York Mets, home vs. Atlanta — on Sunday, the second day of their Grapefruit League play.“Tomorrow we have a split squad, which is probably the worst possible scenario for the beginning of camp because I don’t really love playing guys this early,” Hinch said. “As we push the season earlier — into March now — spring training games, now it feels like mid-February, and we’re revving guys up. The position players don’t need as long a time to get ready for a season.”The 2017 World Series champion Astros field a veteran team and many of those guys entered camp with injury questions. Using the designated hitter spot as sort of a half day off, one of Hinch’s toughest tasks, especially early in spring, will be choosing who gets those at-bats.Springer, a two-time All-Star and the 2017 World Series MVP who is coming off a thumb injury, will make his debut on Sunday as a designated hitter. Brantley, a three-time All-Star who signed with Houston as a free agent Brandon Morrow Jersey , will DH the other game and won’t play the field for at least a week. The 10-year veteran played 141 games last season but only 101 combined games in 2016-17 because of injuries.Returning from offseason knee surgery, 2017 AL MVP Jose Altuve won’t debut until Monday, when he’ll DH instead of playing second base.“We have a predominantly veteran team that’s been around,” Hinch said. “We have a team where there’s few questions and outside of a few health questions and a few decisions we have to make there’s not a lot of stress going into this spring as to what we need to implement.”Saturday night’s lineup for the Astros’ Grapefruit League opener against Washington wasn’t exactly indicative of the team Hinch intends to field when Houston opens the season on March 28 at Tampa Bay, lacking any regulars from last season.Outfielder Jake Marisnick, the closest thing to a regular in the lineup, led off the game by homering against Max Scherzer. Derek Fisher and Kyle Tucker completed the started outfield while the Astros regulars watched from the dugout.“I have to play them tomorrow,” Hinch said. “Springer will player tomorrow, (Josh) Reddick will play tomorrow. Yuli (Gurriel) will play tomorrow. Everybody that you recognize is on our team will likely play tomorrow, minus the infielders.”Third baseman Alex Bregman, who underwent offseason elbow surgery, isn’t expected to make his Grapefruit League debut until the weekend. Unlike his other teammates, Bregman won’t be eased back into Grapefruit League play by starting at DH.“He’ll play third base as soon as he’s ready,” Hinch said.