The Atlanta Braves secured a spot in the 2024 NL playoffs, marking their seventh consecutive postseason appearance.
Despite being eliminated by the San Diego Padres in the wild-card series, making it to the playoffs can be considered an achievement, especially given the team’s numerous injuries.
With key players like Ronald Acuña Jr. sidelined, the Braves’ postseason berth was largely thanks to their acquisition of a starting pitcher from the Boston Red Sox.
Chris Sale was traded to the Braves in exchange for infielder Vaughn Grissom and went on to win the 2024 NL Cy Young Award.
The outcome could have been very different, as Sale revealed his intentions before joining the Braves.
Sale entered the league in 2010 with the Chicago White Sox, where he spent seven seasons before joining the Boston Red Sox for the following six years.
In his inaugural season with the Braves, Sale made 29 starts, finishing with an 18-3 record, a 2.38 ERA, and 225 strikeouts over 177.2 innings pitched.
He also shared that he chose to home-school his children, providing them with a full baseball life experience throughout the season.
After having the best year of his career, it remains uncertain how many more seasons Sale intends to play.
