Chris Sale has been an absolute revelation for the Atlanta Braves since he was acquired from the Red Sox. There were immediate questions surrounding whether this was a good or bad decision by Alex Anthopoulos.
Doubts continued about Sale's ability to stay healthy for an entire season, and whether letting go of a rising prospect in Vaughn Grissom would be worth it. Luckily, everything worked out better than anyone ever expected.
Atlanta's newfound ace pitched about as well as they could have hoped in 2024. He pitched his way to his first Cy Young Award that season. Sale impressed with a 2.38 ERA over 177.2 innings, including 39 walks and 225 strikeouts.
He led the NL in wins (18), ERA (2.38), and strikeouts (225), which made Sale the first NL pitcher to win the Triple Crown since Clayton Kershaw in 2011. It was simply an outstanding show of how great a pitcher the southpaw is.
2025 looked like it was going to be more of the same from the lefty. Unfortunately, a rib fracture sidelined him for a couple of months. Despite that, he still put up a 2.58 ERA over 125 innings with 32 walks and 165 strikeouts.
This made Atlanta's decision to pick up Sale's $18 million option an easy decision. He will be a free agent after this season, and how well he pitches this year could decide a lot.
Chris Sale's performance for the Braves in 2026 could be career-defining
Sale will be 38 during the 2027 season, so there's a chance 2026 could be his curtain call. However, that will mainly depend on how well he performs and his health. Surely, if he still pitches at an elite level and can stay on the field, he will pitch again next season for Atlanta or someone else. His pitching metrics are still incredibly impressive in almost every single category. The only two that fell into the average category are his fastball velocity and ground ball percentages.
As far as his health goes, Atlanta's training staff, along with Sale making some lifestyle changes, has helped keep him on the field successfully. As mentioned above, his rib injury was just a freak thing as he made a great diving play against the Mets, hoping for a complete game.
Had that injury not occurred, Sale would have likely completed the season and thrown over 170 innings again. There's no reason to believe he won't be as good this season for the Braves. If he pitches well enough, he could complete his career, or he could be like Charlie Morton and keep going until he reaches his 40s.