ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Less than two weeks after Chris Sale said he wanted to finish his career with the Atlanta Braves, the former Cy Young award winner and the team agreed to a contract extension Tuesday that could make that a reality.
Sale, 36, signed a one-year, $27 million contract extension that includes a club option for $30 million in 2028. His $27 million average annual value (AAV) represents the highest ever given by the club.
“If there’s anyone who deserves it, it’s him,” president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos told reporters on Tuesday. “I actually think it’s important, you know, as odd as that might sound. There’s no better person to have that highest AAV in the history of the organization, just because of everything he’s about, how he goes about it and so on. So, yeah, he earned it.”
“It was kind of weird,” Sale said. “He said what he said? I said what I said and we kind of just kind of looked at each other like, ‘Are we serious?’ Then I called [agent B.B. Abbott], and was like, ‘Hey, call Alex and figure something out.’ We made our pitch, they made their pitch, and then we kind of met in the middle.”
It’s remarkable to consider, given Chris Sale’s career arc. Injuries limited him to just 31 starts over four seasons with the Red Sox before he was traded to Atlanta in 2024 — a move that sparked a renaissance and culminated in a Cy Young Award.
The turnaround didn’t just revive his career; it strengthened his Hall of Fame case and reestablished him as one of the game’s most respected arms. Over the past two seasons, Sale has posted a 2.46 ERA in 50 appearances (49 starts) for Atlanta. Earlier in his career, he finished in the top six of AL Cy Young voting seven consecutive years from 2012–18.
Sale is expected to take the ball on Opening Day for Atlanta, leading a rotation that has battled its share of injuries — Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez, Grant Holmes and likely either Bryce Elder or Joey Wentz.
“When I was 21 years old, and just got started, that this was kind of how it was all going to play out,” Sale said. “This is what I dreamed of doing. It would have been crazy at the time, to think this would happen, but I’m just very thankful for all the people that got me here.”
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