When players spend an inordinate amount of time on the injured list, there is sometimes a presumption that they are “soft” or “milking it.” Despite carrying the injury-prone label for much of this decade, Chris Sale is leaving no doubt about his drive to take the mound.

The 2024 National League Cy Young Award winner is 36 years old and recovering from a fractured rib. The Atlanta Braves are 48-66 and 14 and a half games out of a playoff spot. Plenty of athletes in a similar position would probably play it safe and sit out the remainder of the campaign. But Sale is tired of ending the year on the shelf. He wants to pitch , and assuming he gets through the rest of his rehab process, that is exactly what he will do.

“I don’t care what our record says, I like to compete and I want to

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