The Atlanta Braves hope to complete the Woo Series lineup by acquiring left-hander Chris Sale from the Boston Red Sox for outfielder Von Grissom on Saturday, increasing their rotation to seven All-Star teams. Sale waived his no-trade clause to complete the deal after months of efforts by the Braves to add starters to a rotation that included Spencer Strider, Max Fried and Charlie Morton.
Grissom was part of a potential trade this winter, including one for Chicago White Sox righty Dillon Jeong, but he was the one who wanted to buy out Hoko, leaving Atlanta with a salary of $17 million, with his salary of 27.5 millions of dollars. it was done 2024, according to reports. Sale, 34, is having his best season since 2019, posting a 4.30 ERA with 125 strikeouts, 29 walks and 15 home runs in 102⅔ innings.
From 2020 to 2022, sales are only 48⅓ percent. Tommy John surgery sidelined him for most of 2020 and 2021, and a groin injury delayed his 2022 debut by a few months, but he broke his left pinky in his first start, and his time was up. Saleand’s stuff isn’t as dynamic as his star peak, but he’s still above average, and Atlanta will likely put him in the rotation at the highest level in baseball.
The Braves began the offseason as World Series favorites, but moved ahead of Atlanta after the Los Angeles Dodgers signed pitcher Shohei Ohtani and right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto. With a record of 120 wins, 80 losses, a 3.10 ERA and the highest strikeout rate for a starting pitcher (11.1 per 9 innings, 2.1 walks per 9 innings), Sale is one of the best pitchers in his age, all of them. -Star in 7 out of 9 negative positions, same. Coming off a brutal Division Series exit after winning 104 games in the regular season, the Braves are the most dominant team in baseball this winter. President of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos has made nine trades this winter and moved tens of millions of dollars, all in an attempt to improve his team in a rare situation. No team has opted for long-term contracts like the Braves.
Among the players who were excluded is National League MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. (through 2028), third baseman Austin Riley (2033), first baseman Matt Olson (2030), second baseman Ozzie Elvis (2027) and second baseman Michael Harris Jr. (2032). ) is there. , catcher Sean Murphy (2029) and Strider (2029), who finished fourth in this year’s Cy Young Award voting. There is no clear path for Grissom to get regular at-bats. He also played infield, but the Jarred Kelenic trade gave Atlanta a left tackle. You can spend money. Grissom, who turned 23 this week, made his major league debut in 2022 after just 22 games above Class A. He looked big, hitting .347/.398/.558 in his first 26 games in place of the injured Albee.
After Dansby Swanson left for the Chicago Cubs in free agency, Grissom enters 2023 and hopes to replace him at shortstop. Orlando Arcia won his spot in spring training, and Grissom spent most of his time in Triple-A, hitting .330/.419/.501 while playing shortstop. In the major league season, he hit .280/.313/.347 but had trouble stopping at shortstop.
Grissom could occupy the second position of the Red Soxand, the subject of complaints from Boston fans. After a winter that spent just $1 million, new Red Sox baseball manager Craig Breslow gave Lucas Giolito his first contract, giving him a two-year, $38.5 million contract that included. I signed a big contract. . The first time.
Boston immediately turned in a different direction, moving Hoko seven years after acquiring him in a blockbuster trade that sent Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech to the White Sox. Sale spent his first seven major league seasons there.
Hoko emerged as Boston’s breakout hitter in 2017, finished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting and finished as the Dodgers’ World Series-winning team in 2018. Losing sales over the past four years, the Red Sox have finished in last place of the AL East three times.
The Warriors, who won the 2021 World Series, enter 2024 with a deep pitching staff under Anthopoulos. In addition to Strider, Fried, Sale and Morton, there are several worthy candidates for the fifth rotation spot. After seeing Texas weather plague injuries en route to a World Series title, the Bravesand#039; I envy the depth of the startup.
That includes right-hander Reynaldo Lopez, the only free agent signed this winter with $30 million guaranteed over three years, 2023 All-Star Bryce Elder, top prospect A.J. Smith-Shawver, World Series winner Ian Anderson and, possibly later in the season, Hurston Waldrep will be the first picks in the 2023 round.
