DETROIT -- He?s 24 hours away from maybe the biggest game of his career, but Chris Sale isn?t sweating.
?I?m just trying to classify this as any other one,? Sale says at his locker.
Yep, just any other game against the Tigers -- the White Sox fiercest division rival -- and a certain MVP and Cy Young Award winner who will be taking the mound against him.
?I try not to get too up or too down on any given day. Just come in, put my cleats on, and go about my business.?
Forget about the 40,000 fans who will be packed into Comerica Park on Sunday night, not to mention the national TV audience and tight race in the American League Central. Sale might as well be back at Peterson Park in his hometown of Lakeland, Fla., playing for Bynum Transport in his very first tee-ball game.
?Well, maybe not that,? he says with a laugh.
But let?s not kid ourselves, every game against the Tigers from here on out carries more weight. Add in the high-profile Sale/Justin Verlander matchup, and if you put this game on a scale, it equates to about seven Prince Fielders.
Ask Chris about it, and it feels more like a pile of feathers.
?I?m trying to keep the same mindset. Go out there and pitch my game, stay with my game plan, try not to get too hyped up, too energetic about it.?
Sale and Verlander might play in the same division, but Chris says they didn?t truly meet until this year?s All-Star Game in Kansas City, where as the starter for the AL, Verlander famously got rocked for five runs in the first inning.
?[Verlander] is a good dude. An unbelievable competitor, a great athlete,? Sale says. ?We?ve all seen what he can do. It?s not going to be an easy one. We?ve got some guys in here that can swing the bat, put some runs on the board, hopefully I can do my part.?
And do better than he did in his last start when Sale gave up four runs in just four innings in Baltimore. It was the shortest start of his young career, and he called his performance ?a disgrace.? What did he take from that game?
?Just stick with it. Learn from what happened,? Sale says. ?I just made some minor adjustments, and kind of figured out what it was, and will try to use it (on Sunday).?
After throwing 71 innings out of the bullpen last season, Sale has more than doubled that number in the rotation. He?s at 157 innings and counting. How many more innings does he have left in the tank?
?That?s tough to answer,? Sale admits.
But if he has another game like Tuesday when he struggled with his fastball and in his words, "hit a brick wall," some will start to wonder if he?s getting closer to empty.
?We?re just going to go by how I feel, and see how this next month plays out, and just take it day by day,? Sale says. ?And if stuff comes up we?ll handle it.?
Tags: Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Justin Verlander, Chris Salemagic mike trailer Alan Turing brave Stephanie Rice Meet the Pyro Karen Klein jerry sandusky
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