The Braves need Chris Sale to be effective in 2026.
The Atlanta Braves are in a difficult overall position. The ball club features enough talent to potentially compete, but a plethora of injury concerns has added uncertainty to their 2026 outlook.
From an offensive standpoint, the team should be able to find success, as long as injuries don't prove to be too much of an obstacle. Ronald Acuna Jr. is one of the best players in MLB when healthy. Matt Olson is a star first baseman. Austin Riley and Ozzie Albies are more than capable of having big seasons. Drake Baldwin won the 2025 National League Rookie of the Year.
The pitching, however, is where the conversation becomes especially uncertain. Before diving into the rotation, it is important to note that the bullpen could be quite impressive. The Braves brought Raisel Iglesias back to be the closer, while they signed Robert Suarez this past offseason.
Before spring training began, it seemed as if Atlanta had a quality combination of talent and depth in the starting rotation. Chris Sale was set to lead the way with Spencer Schwellenbach, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez and one of Joey Wentz, Grant Holmes or Hurston Waldrep following him.
Since spring training began, though, things have changed. Both Schwellenbach and Waldrep are dealing with elbow injuries and they will miss time as a result. Wentz is expected to miss the season with a torn ACL.
Lopez, Strider and Holmes all have the potential to perform well, but they have uncertainty and injury risk. Sale has injury history as well, but he is reliable from a performance standpoint.
Jeff Passan of ESPN even believes the Braves season "hinges" on the veteran southpaw.
Jeff Passan's Chris Sale Take
In a recent ESPN article, Passan made similar points to the ones I made above in reference to the rotation. They are points that have been said quite consistently by most MLB media who cover the Braves.
Passan is not sure the Braves will be able to seriously compete if Sale "isn't his Cy Young-caliber self."
There is no denying the fact that Sale is one of the best pitchers in baseball right now. The Braves' sudden lack of starting pitching depth does unquestionably add even more pressure for him to perform at a high level. The 36-year-old has not displayed any signs of slowing down, so it would not be surprising by any means to see him step up and lead the Braves in 2026.