Red Sox News: Chris Sale Named Opening Day Starter vs. Mariners

To the surprise of no one, the Boston Red Sox will have Chris Sale on the mound when they begin the defense of their World Series title. 

The Red Sox officially announced Sale as their starting pitcher against the Seattle Mariners on March 28:

This will mark Sale's second consecutive Opening Day start for the Red Sox. He allowed one hit and had nine strikeouts in six shutout innings against the Tampa Bay Rays last year. 

Since transitioning from the bullpen to the starting rotation in 2012, Sale has started the opener for his teams four times.

Per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe, Sale has had tremendous success starting the first game of the season:

The seven-time All-Star was traded by the Chicago White Sox to the Red Sox prior to the 2017 season. Rick Porcello, coming off an American League Cy Young Award, was given the Opening Day nod for Boston two years ago. 

Sale went 12-4 with a 2.11 ERA and 237 strikeouts in 158 innings last season. The southpaw also capped off Boston's historic championship run by striking out Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Manny Machado to end the World Series.