Sale earns 1st Cy Young of career after dominant NL campaign

Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale was named the National League Cy Young winner Wednesday.

Sale secured 26 first-place votes to beat out Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler and Pittsburgh Pirates rookie hurler Paul Skenes as the NL's top pitcher.

Sale earned the prestigious honor after winning pitching's Triple Crown. He led the NL in wins (18), ERA (2.38), and strikeouts (225).

The southpaw and his family were elated following the announcement of his win.

The 35-year-old Sale is the fifth-oldest pitcher to win a Cy Young and the first Braves hurler to receive the honor since Tom Glavine in 1998. Only five Braves pitchers (Warren Spahn, Glavine, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, and Sale) have won the award.

Sale joins Sandy Koufax as the only pitchers to strike out 300 hitters in a season, throw the final pitch in a World Series, win a Triple Crown, and earn a Cy Young Award, according to Opta Stats.

He also finished top-five for the Cy Young six times before finally winning one.

The Braves acquired Sale from the Boston Red Sox for infielder Vaughn Grissom ahead of the 2024 campaign.

This is the first Cy Young Award of his storied career, which includes eight All-Star Game appearances and a 2018 World Series championship.