Braves’ Chris Sale makes his 2024 season even more special
With the New York Mets (75-64) riding a six-game winning streak and knocking on the door of the final National League Wild Card slot, the Atlanta Braves (75-63) need someone they can trust implicitly in the last month of the regular season. If someone were to proclaim that Chris Sale would be that guy this past March, you would probably make a mad dash to the calendar to see if you had gone back in time.
But the usually injury-riddled starting pitcher has indeed been a saving grace for the Braves in the year 2024. Actually, he is the best hurler in the National League. The improbable resurgence culminated with a historic moment in Tuesday’s 3-0 home victory against the Colorado Rockies (51-88).
Sale tossed seven scoreless innings and threw a whopping nine strikeouts, one of which secured him a special place in Atlanta baseball lore. “With his 3rd strikeout of the day, Chris Sale has become the first left-handed pitcher in Braves franchise history to collect 200 strikeouts in a single season,” MLB Network posted on X, formerly twitter.
Take a second to process that feat. Not even Tom Glavine– a first-ballot Hall of Famer, World Series MVP, two-time Cy Young and 10-time All-Star — accomplished what Sale just did in Truist Park. In the course of just over eight months, the 35-year-old has gone from being an interesting flier who can give this ballclub pitching depth to the undeniable ace of the starting staff.
Where would the Bravos be without the eight-time All-Star? And where would he be without them? This is a perfect marriage.
Chris Sale is doing all he can to push the Braves into October
When general manager Alex Anthopoulos traded Vaughn Grissom to the Boston Red Sox for Sale in the offseason, fans envisioned the southpaw being firmly behind both Spencer Strider and Max Fried in the rotation, and maybe even Charlie Morton. Chronic injury problems comprised a majority of the skepticism.
Before his gem versus the Rockies on Tuesday night, Sale had not pitched more than 25 starts in a single season since he won a World Series with Boston in 2018. During his descent, which immediately followed a five-year, $145 million contract extension in 2019, his ERA remained somewhat respectable. Sale’s top-notch strikeout rate diminished, however, leading many to dismiss him as a top-level starting pitcher.
Chris Sale now leads the MLB with a 2.46 ERA and 206 strikeouts through 160 2/3 innings, and with his 16 wins, he is currently in line to win the NL pitching triple crown. On the strength of an electric slider, he continues to amaze fans and put Atlanta in position to compete. Manager Brian Snitker needs him to keep that potent formula intact for a bit longer, as the battle-tested Braves desperately try to scrap their way into the postseason.
Many questioned the organization’s confidence in Sale, and he just became the first lefty to open up a 200 Ks club on Battery Avenue. Against all odds, his name is once again in Cooperstown conversations. This comeback story is already etched in history, but it will carry an even greater impact if it continues into October.
Alex House is a sports journalist who covers the NFL, NBA, and MLB for ClutchPoints, providing a unique writing voice due to his in-depth knowledge of New York sports. Alex resides in Connecticut after receiving his journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island.
