In a highly anticipated move, the Boston Red Sox have officially brought back a fan-favorite veteran superstar, offering a significant boost to the team’s roster. This reunion promises to invigorate both the fanbase and the clubhouse as the Red Sox aim to build momentum for the upcoming season. The return of this beloved player, known for his leadership and on-field excellence, signals a strong commitment by the Red Sox to contend at the highest level. Stay tuned for more details on what this means for the team’s future.
offseason, refusing to spend like the big-market team they are known to be. In fact, their most notable move was trading away one of their highest-paid players, Chris Sale, to the Atlanta Braves.
Looking back, this trade seems like one of the worst in Red Sox history, while it’s shaping up to be a masterstroke for Atlanta. Sale appears to be the frontrunner for the NL Cy Young award, with the only question being whether he will also capture the pitching Triple Crown. Meanwhile, the player the Red Sox received in return, Vaughn Grissom, has been a disappointment.
Grissom, a young infielder, has struggled with injuries and underperformed in his 23 MLB appearances for Boston. Despite being healthy later in the season, he has been stuck in Triple-A since late July.
In hindsight, this trade seems incredibly lopsided. However, hindsight is 20/20, and the Red Sox deserve a bit of grace for how things have played out.
Red Sox Deserve Some Slack for the Chris Sale Trade
At his peak with the Red Sox, Chris Sale was one of the American League’s top pitchers. While he never won a Cy Young award, he finished in the top four in voting during his first two seasons with Boston and was a runner-up in 2017. Sale also helped the Red Sox secure a World Series win in 2018.
His stellar performance led to a five-year, $145 million extension before the 2019 season, a deal meant to keep him in Boston through 2024. Unfortunately, everything started to unravel after he signed that extension.
In 2019, Sale made 25 starts but posted a disappointing 4.40 ERA in 147.1 innings. Midway through the season, an elbow injury landed him on the injured list, eventually requiring Tommy John surgery, which sidelined him for all of 2020 and most of 2021. He only made nine starts that year.
Things worsened in 2022 when Sale suffered two non-baseball injuries, limiting him to just two starts. In 2023, although he managed 20 starts, his 4.30 ERA in 102.2 innings was far from his prime performance. Advanced stats indicated some bad luck, but Sale was clearly not the pitcher he once was.
Since signing that contract in 2019, Sale made only 56 starts over four seasons, averaging 14 per year while earning nearly $30 million annually. During those outings, he posted a 4.16 ERA. Given his high salary, inconsistency, and advancing age (35 at the start of 2024), Sale’s value was significantly diminished at the time of the trade.
The Red Sox, on the other hand, acquired an intriguing young player in Grissom. Though Grissom never got a real opportunity with the Braves due to their strong infield, he showed promise, especially on offense. The Red Sox received six years of control over this young talent in exchange for a pitcher who, based on his recent history, was unlikely to return to his former dominance or remain healthy for a full season. It seemed like a smart deal at the time.
While it hasn’t worked out yet for Boston, it’s still early in Grissom’s tenure. At the time of the trade, many saw it as a win-win, or even a win for the Red Sox. Yes, Sale had the potential to rebound, but how likely was that?
Now, with the benefit of hindsight, the deal looks disastrous. Sale has been dominant for the Braves and has helped keep them in postseason contention despite their injury struggles. Atlanta deserves immense credit for that. While Boston bears responsibility for how this has turned out, they also deserve some understanding.
No one, not even the most optimistic Braves fan, could have predicted this level of success from Sale. The fact that Atlanta extended Sale before he even pitched for them makes the deal look even better for the Braves.
Ultimately, the Braves deserve more credit than the Red Sox deserve blame
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