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Red Sox close out disastrous Chris Sale trade by dealing Vaughn Grissom
While Chris Sale has won a Cy Young Award in Atlanta, Grissom played just 31 total games for the Red Sox.
The Red Sox’ decision to deal away an oft-injured Chris Sale in December 2023 continues to look worse and worse.
Boston acquired just one player back from the Braves when they shipped out their former ace after the 2023 season, recouping prospect Vaughn Grissom in the swap.
But, while Sale regained his status as an elite starter in Atlanta, the same can’t be said for a projected future stalwart in Boston’s infield in Grissom.
After two lackluster seasons in the Red Sox’ system, Boston traded Grissom to the Los Angeles Angeles on Tuesday in exchange for outfield prospect Isaiah Jackson. Jackson is the No. 25 prospect in Los Angeles’ farm system, per MLB Pipeline.
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Grissom, 24, struggled to find his footing in Boston, appearing in just 31 total games with the Red Sox — all in 2024. During that abbreviated stint, Grissom batted just .190 with no home runs and six RBI.
Grissom spent the entire 2025 season playing for Triple-A Worcester. There, he generated some solid production by batting .270 with 13 home runs and 48 RBI across 96 games.
But, Grissom never managed to leapfrog other prospects and depth infield options last summer, with players like Kristian Campbell, Marcelo Mayer, David Hamilton, Romy Gonzalez, and Nick Sogard all earning MLB reps over him.
Meanwhile, Sale has been one of the best pitchers in the National League since Boston moved on from him.
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After appearing in just 31 total games over his final four seasons with Boston (2020-23), Sale dominated in 2024 with Atlanta — winning his first Cy Young Award by leading the league in wins (18), ERA (2.38), and strikeouts (225).
Injuries limited Sale to 21 games in 2025, but he still managed to sport a 7-5 record and a 2.58 ERA over that stretch with the Braves.
In return for Grissom, the Red Sox are acquiring a raw prospect with some pop in Jackson. The 21-year-old outfielder was selected in the eighth round of the 2025 MLB Draft by the Angels out of Arizona State.
Last season with the Sun Devils, Jackson crushed 18 home runs in 60 games before playing 10 games with the Angels’ Single-A affiliate, the Tri-City Dust Devils.
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