Baseball is officially all the way back as Spring Training kicked off across the league over the weekend. The Braves have already gotten a look at two starting pitchers that were featured in last year’s All-Star Game. Spencer Strider started the first game of Spring Training with Bryce Elder pitching on Sunday afternoon.
Tomorrow, Braves fans will get to see Max Fried toe the rubber for the first time this Spring in what could potentially be his last season in Atlanta, and on Tuesday, Chris Sale will make his debut for the Braves.
Spring Training results should always be taken with a grain of salt, especially when we’re over a month away from Opening Day. However, everyone is rightfully giddy to see what Chris Sale is going to look like as he joins a star-studded rotation.
The seven-time All-Star has stated he’s had a fully healthy offseason for the first time in years as he enters his age-35 season. Injuries have limited him to just 31 starts since 2020, but when on the mound, he still has the stuff capable of dominating games. The Braves don’t need him to be the ace of their staff. They have a couple of guys already with a stranglehold on that role, but Sale isn’t going to sell himself short. He believes he can still be the perennial Cy Young candidate he was five years ago, and if health permits, there’s no reason to think that’s not possible.
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