Coming off a season in which he won the NL Cy Young award, Atlanta Braves star Chris Sale is ready for the 2025 season. The team's first game comes on Opening Day when the club takes on the San Diego Padres on March 27. On Monday morning, the Braves announced Sale as the Opening Day starter.

This marks the sixth time in Chris Sales' career that he'll be the Opening Day starter, according to Mark Bowman of MLB.com. The soon-to-be 36-year-old pitcher is ultimately excited for the opportunity, as he compared the start to the first day of school and Christmas Day.

“Being out there for the first one is special,” Sale said. “It's like the first day of school. It's like Christmas Day for baseball. Opening Day is always special, and I'm appreciative of the moment.”

Sale made his first career Opening Day start back in 2013 when he was playing for the Chicago White Sox. Other years the veteran pitcher has started on Opening Day in Chicago are 2014 and 2016. He also earned the right to start the first games in 2018 and 2019 with the Boston Red Sox.

Earning the starting nod to begin the 2025 season is a great way for the Braves to honor Chris Sale's achievements from 2024. It was one of the most remarkable comeback seasons, as the star pitcher suffered multiple injuries that limited him to just 151 innings through four seasons (2020 season through 2023).

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The Braves star claimed that he is “appreciative” to start for the team on Opening Day. He admitted that the last time he earned the first start of the season in 2019 with the Red Sox, it didn't go over too well. On March 27, Sale has an opportunity to redeem himself from that 2019 performance.

“I'm just appreciative of the opportunity to do it here in Atlanta with a new organization,” Sale said. “It's been a while, you know, since I've had one, and my last one wasn't very good.”

In 2019, Chris Sale allowed seven earned runs against the Seattle Mariners in the opening three innings. Later that season, he felt arm discomfort which led to him receiving season-ending Tommy John surgery.

Sale certainly hopes to take the 2024 season and carry it into 2025 in Atlanta. He finished last season with an impressive 2.38 ERA and 1.013 WHIP while recording 225 strikeouts through 177.2 innings. Chris Sale ended the season with an 18-3 win-loss record, which was the best in the MLB that season.