This team has won the Chris Sale-Vaughn Grissom trade so far

In December 2023, the Atlanta Braves made a bold move, trading for the aging and oft-injured Chris Sale, a seven-time All-Star starting pitcher. They then signed him to a two-year deal worth $38 million through 2025, with a $18 million club option for 2026. 

The Braves sent the promising, soon-to-be 23-year-old infielder Vaughn Grissom back to the Red Sox in exchange for Sale. The trade has been a boon to the Braves so far and it is looking to be a brilliant move. 

Sale had only pitched in 31 games since 2019. He hadn't started more than 27 games or pitched more than 158 innings since 2017. The trade and consequent contract extension seemed very risky, but those aggressive moves have paid off in a big way for Atlanta. 

Sale is 13-3 in his 18 starts in 2024. Over 110 innings, he has an NL-leading ERA of 2.70. With 11.5 K/9IP, he has struck out more batters per nine innings than his career mark and MLB record of 11.1. He has been the dominating pitcher who finished in the top six in AL Cy Young voting for seven straight years. There is a good chance that if he stays healthy, he could win his first Cy Young.

Grissom, on the other hand, has been a non-factor for the Red Sox. He was slated to start at second next to shortstop Trevor Story, but Grissom got hurt in spring training, missed the first month of the season and then got hurt again a month later. He's been out ever since, though he could be back by August. Story also got hurt (again) and is out for the season. 

The Red Sox were in a bit of a rebuild mode this last offseason, but they have performed pretty well in 2024, probably above expectations. Right now, Boston holds the sixth and final playoff slot, but there is still a lot of season left. When Grissom returns, he could offer a spark for the Red Sox down the stretch. 

To do so, he'll need to hit much better than he did in his first 23 games of the season. In those games, he produced a paltry slash line — .148/.207/.160 — with an almost unfathomable OPS of .367. He had only one extra-base hit — a double — with three RBI. He will need to improve on these numbers mightily if he wants regular playing time. 

Grissom was an acquisition for the future. He's under team control until 2030 and at 23, he has plenty of time to improve his skills and make positive contributions for the Red Sox down the road.

At this point, the trade has been an incredible success for the Braves and an early failure for the Red Sox, but these types of trades can't be truly graded so soon. Sale, however, has provided the production the Braves wanted, and Grissom is still a work in progress.