Chris Sale has three sons. All the time, he tells them something he’s used on himself.
You have two options: You can either do it, or you can complain about it and do it.
“One of those is a lot easier than the other,” Sale said.
So this is what he did from 2020 through 2022, when injuries limited him to 11 starts over those three years.
“Just not giving up,” he said. “Keep going.”
Sale said this Thursday from the Braves’ North Port facility, where he had thrown before talking to reporters over Zoom. He’s the newest member of the Braves’ rotation, and the Braves have a lot of faith in him – so much of it, in fact, that they gave him a two-year, $38 million deal.
And over 15-plus minutes, Sale seemed as advertised. He was candid. You can tell he is a fiery competitor who views winning as paramount. You can respect his honesty about how his Red Sox tenure played out. He seemed like the veteran presence the Braves knew they were getting, though they also expect him to be a playoff-caliber starter.
For the first time in years, Sale is experiencing a normal offseason. It has been full of baseball activity, he said. He’s diligently working through his shoulder program.
“Things that I know that are gonna prepare me for not only getting through spring training, but getting through the season and beyond,” Sale said. “I need reps. That’s the one thing I wasn’t able to do for a long time, was just play catch. And I just had to get my arm in throwing shape, and I’ve been able to do that this offseason.”
The trade ‘caught me by surprise’
A group of Red Sox reporters joined Sale’s Zoom call to hear his thoughts on how everything transpired. To a question from one of them, Sale provided the honesty for which he is known and respected.
“It was nothing short of a disaster the last few years there,” he said of his time in Boston. “I’m not shying away from it. You guys know me, I’m going to be honest.”
At the beginning of the offseason, Sale expected to prepare for 2024 as if it were one final ride with Boston. He was going to put everything into the final season of his deal because he felt like he owed it to Boston.
He never envisioned he’d be traded.
“It actually all kind of caught me by surprise,” he said. “I wasn’t really expecting anything.”
It all happened quickly.
“And then, just kind of out of the blue, got a phone call,” Sale said.
Sale had “10-and-5 rights,” which are reserved for players who eclipse 10 years of major league service time while spending the past five consecutive years with one team. This gave Sale the ability to veto any trade.
He accepted the trade to the Braves because, well, it put him and his family in a great spot. Sale lives in Naples, Florida, and wanted to have spring training in Florida to be close to home. He also hoped he could pitch for a contender. With those two factors in mind, the options were limited.
“Atlanta has had an unbelievable run,” Sale said. “They have one of the best teams in baseball.”
A fruitful offseason
Sale is prioritizing two things this offseason: staying on top of his shoulder program and throwing.
The shoulder program keeps his shoulder strong, but the long toss keeps his arm in throwing shape.
“I’ve just been enjoying a healthy offseason, a normal offseason,” Sale said. “Baseball, I’m having fun doing this stuff again, and I’m enjoying that.”
In 2020, he underwent Tommy John surgery, which also shortened his 2021 season. Then he had a stress fracture in his right rib cage in 2022. Last year, he dealt with a stress reaction in his left shoulder blade.
Knock on wood, Sale said, there haven’t been any residual effects from last year’s stress reaction in his shoulder blade.
Sale said he’d like to drive up to the Braves’ facility a couple of times per week to throw bullpen sessions and familiarize himself with the complex and the people there.
“We’re all systems go, so I’m excited for that,” Sale said.
Joining the Braves’ rotation
Max Fried. Spencer Strider. Charlie Morton.
Now, Sale.
“I gotta talk to Charlie about that fountain of youth he’s sipping because he’s figured out a way to stay strong throughout,” said the 34-year-old Sale, who then praised Strider and Fried.
At his best, Sale is a strikeout machine. In four of his eight seasons, his strikeout rate has ranked in the top 5% in baseball. To put this into greater context: In his prime, Sale’s strikeout rate was comparable with where Strider has been in his first two seasons.
If everyone stays healthy, the Braves should have a terrific rotation.
Sale’s honest assessment
Asked to describe his time in Boston, Sale said: “Ups and downs, man. Life. The best days of my life were there, the worst days of my life were there.”
The injuries limited him, but he credited the people in Boston’s organization for having his back. It seems he truly enjoyed his time there.
From afar, Sale is seen as a fierce competitor. This part of him shows up in different ways. For example, some fans may remember when he cut up the White Sox’s throwback jerseys in the clubhouse because he didn’t want to wear them.
Sale is still himself. He still has the same passion and fire for winning.
But he’s older. He’s grown from everything he’s experienced.
“I’d say I probably pick my spots a little bit better,” Sale said. “You live and you learn. That’s part of what makes me who I am. That’s what makes me who I am as a person and as a competitor. Sometimes it can be a double-edged sword. Sometimes your greatest value, the greatest thing you have can also be a deterrent sometimes. You roll with the punches. You live and you learn. I’d like to think I’ve learned from some of the mistakes I’ve made and (then) look back at some other times, and I’ll stand my ground on those. I like to compete, I like being competitive. Sometimes, that can rub people the wrong way. It is what it is. I want to win.”
A fun fact
When Sale was 12 or 13 years old, he went to a camp and met … Chipper Jones, the Braves Hall of Famer.
Jones was Sale’s first autograph. Sale also took a picture with Jones.
Sale grew up in Lakeland, Florida. He wasn’t specifically a Braves fan, but he knows what it means to play for them.
Now, he has a chance to win a World Series – his second, after earning a ring with Boston in 2009 – with the Braves.
“Growing up in the South, this was kind of the team down here,” Sale said. “Rich in history. You look at some of the players that have come through this organization. Shoot, even the players that are on this roster now. It’s exciting. It’s got a buzz. This ‘A’ represents something.”
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