BOSTON — Chris Sale wasn’t exactly Chris Sale on Friday night, but he was still good enough to beat the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALDS.
He may not have been as overpowering as he normally is against the Yankees, but Sale used his off-speed pitches effectively and allowed just two runs in 5 ¹/₃ innings in Boston’s 5-4 win at Fenway Park.

“He wasn’t his dominant self necessarily, but I thought he did a really nice job of mixing his pitches, changing speeds,’’ Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.

If Sale had been in typical form, the five-run cushion the Red Sox provided him by the third inning would have been insurmountable — especially given that he historically has dominated the Yankees.

Entering the game, Sale had the lowest WHIP and opponents’ batting average of any pitcher who had pitched at least 100 innings against the Yankees, as well as the second-lowest ERA (1.61). And he was superb against the Yankees during the regular season this year.

But Sale has yet to completely return to form after being sidelined by left shoulder inflammation. He needed 24 pitches to get through the first inning.

But he struck out eight, and when he left the mound in the sixth after 93 pitches, the Yankees hadn’t scored a run.

Sale, though, left a pair of baserunners for Ryan Brasier and the right-hander allowed both to score.

That sixth inning gave the Yankees a bit of life, but the embattled Red Sox bullpen was able to keep Boston ahead.
In his final outing of the regular season, Sale’s average velocity on his fastball was just over 90 mph — down roughly 5 mph from his usual speed.

On Friday, some of that velocity returned and his slider frequently gave the Yankees fits.

“It really didn’t matter if it was 91 [mph] or 99, we knew he was going to compete,’’ Boston manager Alex Cora said.

If Sale is needed again in the ALDS, he insisted he would be prepared — and he said he could have kept going Friday.

“I threw every pitch tonight like [Cora] was going to take the ball out of my hand after the pitch I threw,’’ Sale said. “If he didn’t take the ball out of my hand, I would have kept throwing. … There’s no holding back. [If] they want me to throw 150 [pitches], I’m throwing 150. If they ask me to throw [Saturday], I’ll throw [Saturday]. I think that’s the mindset for every person in this clubhouse.”