Connect with us

Published

on

The Atlanta Braves acquired left-hander Chris Sale from the Boston Red Sox for infielder Vaughn Grissom on Saturday, shoring up their rotation with the seven-time All-Star they hope rounds out a World Series-caliber roster.

Sale waived his no-trade clause to consummate the deal, which followed months of efforts from the Braves to add a starting pitcher to a rotation that already includes Spencer Strider, Max Fried and Charlie Morton. Although Grissom had been part of prospective trades this winter, including offers for Chicago White Sox right-hander Dylan Cease, he wound up being what it took to get Sale, who will go to Atlanta along with $17 million to offset his $27.5 million salary in 2024, per sources.

Sale, 34, is coming off his best season since 2019, having posted a 4.30 ERA in 102⅔ innings with 125 strikeouts, 29 walks and 15 home runs allowed. From 2020 to 2022, Sale threw only 48⅓ innings. Tommy John surgery kept him out in 2020 and most of 2021, and a rib injury delayed his 2022 debut for months, only for a comebacker to break his left pinkie in his first start back and end his season.

Sale’s stuff, although not as dynamic as his exceptional peak, remains well above average, and Atlanta will insert him into a rotation that’s among the best in baseball. The Braves opened the offseason as World Series favorites, but the Los Angeles Dodgers edged ahead of Atlanta after their signings of two-way star Shohei Ohtani and right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Sale, who is 120-80 with a 3.10 ERA and the highest strikeout rate ever for a starting pitcher — 11.1 per nine innings, against just 2.1 walks per nine — has been one of the finest pitchers of his generation and is set to reach free agency after 2024.

The Braves, stocked with All-Stars at seven of nine offensive positions and coming off a brutal division series exit after a 104-win regular season, have been the most active team in baseball this winter. President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has made nine trades this winter and moved around tens of millions of dollars, all in an attempt to upgrade his team in the middle of a rare window.

No team has negotiated the long-term-contract business as well as the Braves. Among those locked up: reigning National League MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. (through 2028), third baseman Austin Riley (2033), first baseman Matt Olson (2030), second baseman Ozzie Albies (2027), center fielder Michael Harris II (2032), catcher Sean Murphy (2029) and Strider (2029), who finished fourth in Cy Young voting this year.

With no clear path for Grissom to get regular at-bats — he has played outfield, too, but the trade for Jarred Kelenic gave Atlanta its left fielder — he became expendable. Grissom, who turns 23 this week, made his big league debut in 2022 after just 22 games above Class A. He looked every bit the part of a major leaguer over his first 26 games, hitting .347/.398/.558 while filling in for an injured Albies. After Dansby Swanson left for the Chicago Cubs in free agency, Grissom entered 2023 hopeful to replace him at shortstop. Orlando Arcia won the job in spring training, and Grissom spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he hit .330/.419/.501 playing mostly shortstop. In limited big league time, he hit .280/.313/.347 but struggled defensively at shortstop.

Grissom could fill the Red Sox’s open second-base job, which has been a subject of discontent from an increasingly agitated Boston fan base. After a winter in which they’d spent only $1 million, new Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow made his first big signing, giving right-hander Lucas Giolito a two-year, $38.5 million contract that includes an opt-out after the first season.

Boston immediately pivoted in another direction, moving Sale seven years after acquiring him in a blockbuster trade that sent top prospects Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech to the White Sox, where Sale spent his first seven major league seasons. Sale arrived in 2017 as Boston’s ace, finishing second in American League Cy Young voting, and in 2018 closed out the team’s World Series victory against the Dodgers. Over the past four seasons, as Sale missed significant time, the Red Sox finished in last place in the AL East three times.

The Braves, who won the 2021 World Series, will enter 2024 with perhaps their deepest pitching staff under Anthopoulos. In addition to Strider, Fried, Sale and Morton, there’s a panoply of worthy contenders for the fifth rotation spot. After watching Texas weather pitching injuries en route to a World Series title, the Braves’ starting depth is enviable. It includes their only free agent signing this winter — right-hander Reynaldo Lopez, who was guaranteed $30 million over three years — plus 2023 All-Star Bryce Elder, top prospect A.J. Smith-Shawver, World Series hero Ian Anderson and, perhaps later in the season, 2023 first-round pick Hurston Waldrep.

Continue Reading

Sports

Sale, Crochet named comeback players of year

Published

on

By

Sale, Crochet named comeback players of year

LAS VEGAS — Left-handers Chris Sale of the Atlanta Braves and Garrett Crochet of the Chicago White Sox won Major League Baseball’s Comeback Player of the Year awards on Thursday.

Cleveland right-hander Emmanuel Clase won his second AL Reliever of the Year award and St. Louis righty Ryan Helsley won the NL honor.

Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani joined David Ortiz as the only players to win four straight Outstanding Designated Hitter awards. Ohtani and the New York YankeesAaron Judge won Hank Aaron Awards as the outstanding offensive performers in their leagues.

Major League Baseball made the announcements at its All-MLB Awards Show.

Sale, 35, was 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA and 225 strikeouts in 177⅔ innings for the NL’s first pitching triple crown since the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw in 2011. He earned his eighth All-Star selection and first since 2018.

Sale helped Boston to the 2018 World Series title but made just 56 starts from 2020-23, going 17-18 with a 4.86 ERA, 400 strikeouts and 79 walks over 298⅓ innings. He was acquired by Boston from the White Sox in December 2016 and made nine trips to the injured list with the Red Sox, mostly with shoulder and elbow ailments. He had Tommy John surgery on March 30, 2020, and returned to a big league mound on Aug. 14, 2021.

Sale fractured a rib while pitching in batting practice in February 2022 during the management lockout. On July 17, in his second start back, he broke his left pinkie finger when he was hit by a line drive off the bat of the Yankees’ Aaron Hicks. Sale broke his right wrist while riding a bicycle en route to lunch on Aug. 6, ending his season.

Crochet, 25, was 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA over 32 starts for a White Sox team that set a post-1900 record of 121 losses, becoming a first-time All-Star. He struck out 209 and walked 33 in 146 innings.

He had Tommy John surgery on April 5, 2022, and returned to the major leagues on May 18, 2023. Crochet had a 3.55 ERA in 13 relief appearances in 2023, and then joined the rotation this year.

Sale and Crochet were chosen in voting by MLB.com beat writers.

Clase and Helsley were unanimous picks by a panel that included Hall of Famers Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Dennis Eckersley and Rollie Fingers, along with John Franco and Billy Wagner. The AL award is named after Rivera and the NL honor after Hoffman.

A three-time All-Star, Clase was 4-2 with a 0.61 ERA, 66 strikeouts and 10 walks in 74⅓ innings, holding batters to a .154 average. The 26-year-old converted 47 of 50 save chances, including his last 47.

Voting was based on the regular season. Clase was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in the playoffs, allowing three home runs, one more than his regular-season total.

Helsley, a two-time All-Star, was 7-4 with a 2.04 ERA and 49 saves in 53 chances. He struck out 79 and walked 23 in 66⅓ innings.

Ohtani became the first player with 50 or more homers and 50 or more stolen bases in a season. A two-way star limited to hitting following elbow surgery, Ohtani batted .310 and led the NL with 54 homers and 130 RBIs while stealing 59 bases.

Ortiz won the DH award five years in a row from 2003-07.

The DH award, named after Edgar Martinez, is picked in voting by team beat writers, broadcasters and public relations departments. MLB.com writers determined the finalists for the Aaron awards, and a fan vote was combined with picks from a panel of Hall of Famers and former winners to determine the selections.

Judge led the major leagues with 58 homers and 144 RBIs while hitting .322.

Continue Reading

Sports

QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

Published

on

By

QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who lost his starting job earlier this week, will not be returning to the team, he announced Thursday night.

Castellanos, who started 12 games last season and retained the top job under new coach Bill O’Brien, wrote on X that “unfortunately, all good things come to an end, even though it’s sooner than I would like.” He did not mention the transfer portal in his departing message and has not officially entered it. The junior from Waycross, Georgia, started his career at UCF and appeared in five games in 2022.

O’Brien said Tuesday that Grayson James, who replaced Castellanos in last week’s win against Syracuse, will start Saturday when Boston College visits No. 14 SMU. Castellanos “wasn’t real thrilled” with the decision, O’Brien said, adding that the quarterback decided to step away from the team for several days.

Castellanos had 2,248 passing yards and 1,113 rushing yards last season under coach Jeff Hafley, passing for 15 touchdowns and adding 13 on the ground. He had 18 touchdown passes and only five interceptions this season, but his accuracy dipped in recent weeks, and he completed only 2 of 7 passes against Syracuse before being replaced.

In his statement, Castellanos thanked both coaching staffs he played for at Boston College and wrote that he had “some of the best experiences of my life in the Eagles Nest and I will truly cherish these memories forever.”

Continue Reading

Sports

Gators’ Lagway ‘ready to play,’ will start vs. LSU

Published

on

By

Gators' Lagway 'ready to play,' will start vs. LSU

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is “ready to play,” coach Billy Napier said Thursday on his weekly radio show.

Napier removed Lagway from the team’s injury report and penciled him in to start against No. 21 LSU in the Swamp on Saturday.

Lagway practiced every day this week while progressing from a strained left hamstring. The highly touted freshman was carted off the field against Georgia on Nov. 2. Tests revealed a “less significant” injury than initially feared, and now he’s back in time to face the Tigers.

The Gators (4-5, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) need him. They have to win two of their final three regular-season games to become bowl eligible.

LSU (6-3, 3-2) has struggled mightily against dual-threat QBs, including Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, who ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns last week.

Lagway returns after walk-on and Yale transfer Aidan Warner started in his place against Texas. Warner threw two interceptions and was 12-of-25 passing for 132 yards in a 49-17 loss.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Continue Reading

Trending