With the regular season just days away, the Atlanta Braves have decided to reveal their Opening Day starting pitcher. The Braves have had a history of excellent starters taking the mound on Opening Day, and 2025 will be no different, as 2024 NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale has been given the nod for the first game of the season.
Chris Sale had a fantastic 2024, finishing the season with a 2.38 ERA, 2.09 FIP, and 6.4 fWAR. It will be Sale's sixth career Opening Day starter, with three coming with the White Sox and two with the Red Sox, but his first since 2019.
Your 2025 Opening Day Starter for the Atlanta Braves: Chris Sale 🔥#BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/zUJwW0xX2T
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) March 17, 2025
Chris Sale, your Braves Opening Day starting pitcher
Coming into the 2024 season, Chris Sale's career had gone from surefire Hall of Famer to one that had seemingly been derailed by injuries. From 2019 through 2023, the lefty had only made 56 starts and had a 4.16 ERA in 298.1 innings.
In 2024, however, he turned back the clock, pitching 177.2 innings in 29 starts, and easily took home the Cy Young, with earning 26 out of the 30 first place votes. So far in spring training, he has continued to pitch well, as he's pitched 15.1 innings with a 3.52 ERA and 0.85 WHIP. He's even taken time to honor a Red Sox legend on the mound.
Sale will be the Braves third Opening Day starter in the last three seasons. Max Fried had made three consecutive starts from 2021 to 2023 before Spencer Strider took over the reigns last season.
However, with Max Fried now a member of the New York Yankees and Spencer Strider rehabbing from the internal brace surgery that wiped out his 2024 season, Chris Sale became the obvious choice for the honor.
Sale will look to jumpstart a Braves revenge tour, after last season was marred by injuries. The Braves take on the San Diego Padres on March 27 at 4:10 pm Eastern Time.