Detailing the Braves' pursuit of Chris Sale
Alex Anthopoulos wasn't going top stop asking.
The Braves president of baseball operations had first inquired about Chris Sale's availability in the offseason leading into the 2023 season. And then, last trade deadline, he called the Red Sox about the lefty again. No dice.
But then Anthopoulos found the sweet spot when it came to acquiring the pitcher he viewed as the perfect piece to an already pretty impressive puzzle.
While waiting the 2023 calendar year to run out the clock, sitting up in Canada at his in-laws place, the Braves boss came to terms with new Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow on a deal that would send Sale to Atlanta in exchange for 23-year-old infielder Vaughn Grissom.
"I mean, I think everybody in the league admires Chris, his career and the person and the ability to be one of the best starters in the game for a long time in his career," Anthopoulos said on the 'Baseball Isn't Boring' podcast on the eve of his team's two-game series against the Red Sox. "So we checked in the previous offseason. Obviously, that didn't go anywhere and checked in again, last summer in '23. That obviously didn't go anywhere, as well. And then we checked back in in the offseason and just kind of stayed in touch. And as we both know, the offseason is long, and all kinds of changes happen with the trades and so on. We just kind of stayed in communication, and it really came together, you know, right at the end there before the New Year."
So, why Sale?
This was a pitcher who was turning 35 years old the following March, was slated to be making $27.5 million in 2024 (with a $20 million club option for 2025) after making a combined 31 starts over the previous four seasons. His fastball velocity was down and those injury-related interruptions seemed to be something Sale simply couldn't shake.
But Anthopoulos had been convinced, by both the image of what was, and - according to his medical team - what was.
"Look, I think everyone agreed when he's out there he's good," Anthopoulos noted. "The question was health. But once we got access to look at his file, got a sense and had our our trainers and doctors review it - and you can never guarantee health ... Obviously, we're in Year 1 and early in Year 1, but so far, he's gotten off to a phenomenal start for us. But really, that was a good deal for both teams."
At the time of the deal, the merits of the deal was up for debate.
The naysayers looking at the Braves return obviously pointed to Sale's lack of health and productivity since 2019. From the Red Sox' point of view, the risk was committing to a player in Grissom who simply didn't have a place to play with the Braves and would have to learn a new primary position at second base in Boston.
The questions and uncertainty in this deal were all over the place. That was for everybody but the two teams making the transaction.
"I mean, it made a ton of sense for both clubs," Anthopoulos said. "You know, I've said this many times, I think Vaughn is going to be an All-Star caliber player. The makeup ... I think he's type of guy that can be a core player. Because the makeup, the person, you can't help but smile when you bring up his name, or he walks in that clubhouse. And he can flat-out hit. I mean, there's no doubt about that. ... Look, obviously we have to give to get and, you know, they weren't looking to move Chris Sale. They weren't shopping, and we were the ones that approached them. It always had been us initiating the conversation and trying to engage them. So I think it worked out for both clubs. Obviously, we'll find out over time, but I think it made sense. That's why it finally came together."
Then was the matter of doubling-down.
A week after becoming a Brave, Sale agreed to sign a brand new deal with his new team, one that would guarantee that 2025 season while pushing the club option to 2026. Why? Anthopoulos had his reasons.
"We were talking about (the extension) a few days after (the trade), and the more we talked about it was, part of the value was having the club option for the following year. We knew it wasn't a one and done," the Braves POBO said. "Those are some of the challenges with some of the other guys that were out there. ... We knew we had two years of control with Chris. But I think the more we thought about it, after we made the deal, we just started talking about how important we felt he was going to be in the clubhouse, how we wanted him to be a core guy set an example for the young guys. Our thought with that trade was we really valued that club option. And of course, it was our option. We could have waited and so on. But we felt like for what we wanted out of Chris - and he didn't ask for it or anything like that at all didn't expect it - we just felt like the right thing was for him to know he was going to be here. He wasn't trying to pitch for his option or his contract. In return for that we would ultimately get an option for Year 3.
"A big part of the appeal was who he was as a person, and the example he could set because our strength in the minor leagues is on the mound, and knowing that we're going to have guys that are going to come up and so on having him be an example not that we're asking him to be anything more than he is. Same thing with Charlie Morton. But those two guys in our clubhouse, and it was real foundational pieces. For all the young starters. I think, you know, it's hard to quantify but I think in the long run, you know, the youngsters, their careers will be impacted and enhanced in my opinion, by having those guys around. So I think the more we talked about it, we just said, 'Hey, let's do this.' Yes, we don't need to do this. But let's do it. You know, the trade off is he's got stability he knows is going to be here. And we have access to a third year."
So far, Anthopoulos' instincts have been keen.
Heading into Sale's start Wednesday against the Red Sox, the southpaw has a 3.44 ERA and 0.95 WHIP, striking out 42 and walking just seven. His chase rate is in the 96 percentile of all major league pitchers, with hitters managing just a .159 batting average against his most prevalent pitch, the slider.
And then there is the impact Sale has had on the other members of the Braves' pitching staff. It's the same kind of influence ingrained in those Red Sox pitchers he called teammates one season ago.
"I'm a big believer that teammates can make other teammates better," Anthopoulos said. "How to quantify this is hard. But Chris Sale is phenomenal for what he does on the mound. But that other (mentoring) piece with all these assets we have on the mound, it's very important for us."