The Atlanta Braves trade for Chris Sale has a real chance to go down as the best deal in franchise history. The Boston Red Sox essentially gave him away, even sending $17 million just to move the remainder of his contract.

In his first season in Atlanta, Sale delivered a Cy Young campaign. The deal had already paid for itself at that point, but he followed it up with a 2.58 ERA in year two, signed an extension, and now looks like someone who will once again be firmly in the Cy Young conversation — health permitting.

You could argue he’s been the best pitcher in baseball since arriving in Atlanta. But what really adds another layer to this trade is the Vaughn Grissom side of it.

Grissom was a top-100 prospect when he went to Boston, viewed as a player with a promising offensive profile. Instead, he appeared in just 31 games over two seasons before being flipped this past offseason to the Los Angeles Angels for Isaiah Jackson, a 22-year-old still in High-A.

It didn’t make many headlines at the time, but Grissom is starting to show signs of life in Los Angeles, hitting .342 with a homer and a .939 OPS over his first 13 games.

The Red Sox effectively salary-dumped a fan favorite who has turned into one of the best pitchers in baseball, got minimal return from the prospect they acquired, and now that same prospect is beginning to find his footing elsewhere.

For a team sitting in last place, already having moved on from their manager Alex Cora, one can only imagine if things might have worked out differently had this deal never happened.

From the Braves perspective, though, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

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(Photo by John Adams/Icon Sportswire)