Chris Sale hopes to spend rest of career with Braves

NORTH PORT, Fla. — Chris Sale, seeing his masterful career devastated by injuries, contemplated retirement not long before his trade to the Braves. A couple of years later, it’s easy to envision the soon-to-be 37-year-old pitching into his 40s if he desires.

Whether it’s one more year, three or five, Sale wants it to be with the Braves.

“I would like to (finish my career with the Braves),” he said. “I really like being here. These guys obviously gave me a shot and picked me up off the ground. I ended ’23 kind of limping into the offseason. Everyone has been great to me here and I really enjoy being here.”

The 2024 Cy Young winner is entering the final year of his contract. His age naturally invites questions of how much longer he can remain productive and how much longer he hopes to pitch. But his attitude and performance indicate he’ll want another contract.

Future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander, who turns 43 in a week, just signed a deal. Max Scherzer, 41, is hoping to continue pitching. There are plenty of examples through the years for Sale to follow if he wants to continue.

“For me, I just don’t want to get too far ahead of myself,” Sale said. “I’ve honestly never been in this position before, not really knowing what’s going on next year. But I don’t worry myself with that. I don’t wear a suit, I’m not a businessman. I’m a baseball player. So my job is to show up here and play baseball, and that’s what I’m going to do. Whether that’s five more years or five more days, I have a job to do and I like focusing on that.

“But, I guess the last time I said I was going to retire, it ended up being good. So I guess I’m retiring (laughs).”

President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos took a calculated risk when he acquired Sale from the Red Sox in December 2023. The lefty’s body had failed him, leading to only 151 innings pitched over the previous four years.

The Braves nevertheless felt confident in their intel about his health; so much so that Anthopoulos extended his contract before seeing him wear the Braves uniform.

Sale since has posted a 2.46 ERA in over 300 innings for the Braves. He made the All-Star team both years and in 2024, he finally captured the Cy Young Award after finishing in the top six of voting seven times previously.

He missed two months last season after injuring his ribs making a diving play, and a back issue kept him out of the team’s brief postseason appearance in 2024, but he’s certainly rebounded healthwise from his later years in Boston.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise then that Anthopoulos shares Sale’s enthusiasm about extending this union. He made it clear he envisions Sale with the franchise moving forward.

“I’m hoping Chris Sale is here as long as he wants to continue to go,” Anthopoulos said. “That would be our goal. One of my favorite players I’ve had as a GM. I’m grateful I’ve had a chance to be part of his career and be part of a team that had him. Those guys are so hard to find. The value beyond what they do on the field is immense. The hope is that he plays as long as he wants to and that it will be with the Braves.”

New Braves manager Walt Weiss concurred: “He’s one of the more impressive big leaguers that I’ve ever been around, quite frankly. Taking everything into consideration: The way he works, the way he competes, the things he’s accomplished. He has zero diva in him for a guy who’s a Hall of Famer. The way he treats people. The way he cares about the team. You couldn’t make it up in a lab any better than what Chris Sale brings. When you take everything into consideration, he’s as good as it gets.

“I’d love to see him finish his career as a Brave.”

Anthopoulos has made numerous shrewd trades over the years, most notably retooling his outfield in July 2021, which led to a championship. But when time tells his story, the Sale deal could be remembered as his best.

The team swapped prospect Vaughn Grissom, who didn’t have a path to playing time in Atlanta, for Sale (and even had Boston pay some of the bill).

It was a bold acquisition considering the questions around Sale. It generated mixed opinions at the time. The perceived upside might not have outweighed the risk.

“When we did the trade, I told (team chairman) Terry McGuirk at the time — obviously he’s signing off on everything — that it was going to get loud,“ Anthopoulos said. ”Vaughn was an exciting young player. Chris had missed a lot of time. I knew there’d be a lot of criticism, that was fair. But we felt pretty good with what we knew of the health. The exciting part was the person, beyond the ability. I always say it, it would’ve been unbelievable to have 25-year-old Chris Sale as a GM and have him as that pillar and rock.

“We didn’t expect Cy Young — I don’t think anyone did, he hadn’t won one in his career — and we’d be lying if we said that. But the extension we gave him, we had an option for that following year, so we had no need to do it. But we wanted to have him settle in and have an option for the following year (2026). We thought he could be back to a mid-to-front-of-the-rotation guy. He’s done all of that and then some.”

Anthopoulos and Weiss have raved about having Sale’s influence around the organization’s younger pitchers this time of year. He’s long been considered the ultimate teammate, a tone-setter whose mere presence elicits respect.

It goes beyond the stats and accolades, beginning with what’s deemed legendary preparation.

“He’s dialed into what he needs to do and what he believes in, and there’s really no concern for what everybody else is doing around him or what people think he should be doing,” starting pitcher Spencer Strider told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There’s a lot of voices and noise, people who can influence you in all kinds of directions. He is so locked in on where he needs to be that that stuff doesn’t faze him at all. That’s the thing I see that’s most impressive about him.

“When that (Sale trade) happened, and I saw that name, it was something where you stop what you’re doing and acknowledge the fact that you’re about to play with likely a Hall of Famer. I’ve been fortunate to play with a few guys who have that presence about them, and obviously he’s near the top of the list, if not at the top, of guys who, whatever is going on, you look to see what he’s doing and what he’s thinking. There’s plenty of people who’ve had the honor of playing with him, and it’s worth being grateful that you got the chance.”

Indeed, Sale’s fervent on-mound demeanor is a consistent reminder of how greatly he cares. His team’s success is extremely personal. His oozing competitiveness only inspires those around him.

And yet, despite his stature, he remains relatable to his teammates. He stays committed to his diligent process while still embracing the extra responsibility that comes with being a player of his ilk.

“He’s very approachable,” third baseman Austin Riley told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Some guys have that ‘it’ about them, just bringing guys closer in the clubhouse and the group. He does that. He’s willing to give advice to younger pitchers. He’s just that complete person, the player he is, in the clubhouse, being able to be available says a lot about him.”