BOSTON -- Chris Sale has been with the Boston Red Sox just two years, but his acquisition must go down as one of the greatest trades in franchise history.

Maybe it’s not the Heathcliff Slocumb for Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek heist of 1997. And it's not the acquisition of future Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez from the Montreal Expos. Or the deal to get Curt Schilling back from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Or the trade that jettisoned Nomar Garciaparra in a four-way deal that landed Orlando Cabrera and Doug Mientkiewicz.

But Sale's deal is climbing the charts in Beantown. He has been absolutely everything the Red Sox envisioned when they sent prized prospects Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech, along with Luis Alexander Basabe and Victor Diaz, to the Chicago White Sox. Sale is arguably the greatest left-handed pitcher in the game, while Moncada struck out 217 times with a hitting line of .235/.315/.400 and Kopech underwent Tommy John surgery and is out until 2020.

“There is only one Chris Sale in the game right now,’’ Red Sox first baseman Mitch Moreland said. “He’s making his mark as a Hall of Fame pitcher. We’re not here without him.’’

Red Sox general manager Dave Dombrowski’s shrewd deal is Lesson 1-A why GMs should stop being so afraid to trade prospects for proven stars. You want to win, go for the gusto.

“Everybody has to decide what they want to do,’’ Dombrowski told USA TODAY Sports, “but for us, when you have a chance to win, you go for it. Sometimes, it’s painful. You can’t do both. You can’t protect all of your prospects and also trade for good guys.

“You’re not going to get Chris Sale unless it hurts a little bit. Everybody has to make their own decisions, but for us, it made sense, and he’s been just tremendous for us.’’

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Without Sale, the Red Sox aren’t sitting with 111 victories and counting as they head into the American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros on Saturday night (8:07 p.m. ET, TBS).

And really, the Astros aren’t the defending World Series champions and favored to repeat without Justin Verlander, whom Astros GM Jeff Luhnow grabbed last August after Verlander inexplicably cleared waivers, with no team but the Astros willing to trade prospects while taking on his salary.

Now, these two perennial All-Star pitchers are facing one another again, a repeat of a year ago, when they pitched Game 1 of the AL Division Series.

“As a starting pitcher, you love those battles,’’ says Verlander, who’ll be headed to the Hall of Fame when his career ends. “He’s a fierce competitor. I always enjoyed watching him pitch.’’

Well, easy for Verlander to say since he has never had to bat against him. When Red Sox DH J.D. Martinez was in Detroit, with his team facing Sale 19 times a year in the AL Central, he almost threw a party when he heard that Sale was traded to the Red Sox.

“I remember,’’ Martinez said, “we used to always have, I felt like, a day game in Chicago, one of those twilight, mid-shadow games in Chicago. And we always landed Chris Sale for that game.

“I was, like, dude, this is like a horror film, this is terrible. I was definitely relieved when he was traded.’’

And now that they are teammates in Boston, well, Sale is the Astros’ problem now.

“He has weapons beyond human nature,’’ Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “We have our hands full. He's one of the best pitchers in the league, and it's not by accident.

“His size, the angle of his pitches, you just don't see that. The spin on his breaking ball is ridiculous. He's got some tenacity to him. He has fearlessness.

“He knows he’s good.’’

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Sale, a shoo-in for the AL Cy Young award until he was sidelined for all but 17 innings the final two months of the regular season with an inflamed shoulder, is healthy again. He led the Red Sox to a Game 1 victory in the ALDS against the New York Yankees, and his relief appearance in Game 4 helped send them home. Now he feels as strong as ever.

“Oh, he’s ready,’’ Game 2 starter David Price said. “Dealing with the injuries he’s had the last two months, I know it was tough for him. It probably put a lot of stress on a lot of people.

“But to see him bounce back against the Yankees, that was big for himself, big for us, and now there shouldn’t be any questions about his health moving forward. There are no concerns now.’’

Sale is not only healthy, but also has a Texas-sized chip on his shoulder, remembering how the Astros beat him up in Game 1 last season. He gave up nine hits and seven earned runs in just five innings in that 8-2 loss, and for 377 days, has been awaiting this moment.

“That left a bitter taste in my mouth all year,’’ Sale said. “I’ve been waiting a long time to get rid of it.’’

Here is his chance, knowing he’s the key to the Red Sox’s hopes of knocking off the defending champions and returning to the World Series for the first time since 2013.

“We know who we’re up against, but we were a 108-win team for a reason,’’ said Sale, who was 12-4 with a 2.11 ERA, pitching just 158 innings. “It’s not trying to do more in these situations where the lights are brighter, the crowds are louder. We don't need more. We just need the same.

“We’re here to win, and we've got to do whatever it takes to get there.’’

It starts with Sale, the gift that keeps on giving, with no end in sight.

Follow Nightengale on Twitter @BNightengale