Unlike naming an Opening Day starter which comes with a certain amount of prestige, naming the first guy up in spring training is more a formality. Spring training is about guys getting their work in one way or another and the exact timing of that work doesn't matter especially early on in camp.
However, what such announcements DO help with is understanding who is healthy to start camp. If a guy is working through something or is being managed carefully, they will generally work out on the back fields and get eased into game action over the course of spring training.
This is relevant here because the Braves just declared that Chris Sale will get the mound to kick of Grapefruit League play after winning the NL Cy Young last season.
Chris Sale getting the first crack at spring training is great news for his health this season
Based purely on merit (if such a thing mattered here), Sale would be an easy choice for the Braves. With the departures of Max Fried and Charlie Morton, Sale's pedigree and the fact that he basically carried the Braves last season to a playoff appearance gives him the best case for the job as well as for the Opening Day starter spot which Atlanta has yet to announce. At the end of the day, he is likely to only go a couple innings, but it will be great to see him out there nonetheless.
However, the biggest takeaway here isn't that Sale is good. He is, but that isn't relevant right now. What is relevant is that Sale feels fresh enough to get things rolling in spring training. Given that the Braves' veteran starter dealt with a back issue at the end of 2024, it is nice to see that it doesn't seem to have lingered through the offseason into camp and he looks ready to run it back this season.
A lot can change in the coming weeks. Players can and do get hurt or come out of the gates slowly and that could include Sale especially at his age. However, it is still good news that Sale is getting the ball right away because, for the moment, he appears ready to get back to doing what he did last year.