Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale was ejected from Yankee Stadium on Sunday afternoon before the game against the New York Yankees commenced, following a dispute with an umpire over a balk call from the previous night. Sale, who was not scheduled to pitch in Sunday's series finale, confronted umpire Dan Merzel, who had made the call against him in Saturday's game.
Merzel ejected Sale shortly after the confrontation began, before the first pitch was thrown. Sale continued to voice his displeasure toward crew chief Dan Bellino. The ejection stemmed from a balk called on Sale in the fifth inning of Saturday's contest. This was Sale's third career balk, and the call allowed a Yankees run to score after an RBI triple. The Yankees ultimately won Saturday's game 5-4.
Braves manager Walt Weiss was also ejected from Saturday's game, reportedly intervening during Sale's argument with Merzel. According to Bellino, Sale was called for the balk for pitching from the windup without declaring his intention to do so. Sale had previously struck out José Caballero from the windup but did not do so before facing Austin Wells in the sequence that led to the balk call.
Sale pitched six innings on Saturday, allowing three runs on five hits. It marked his first loss since late June. He has posted a 2.20 ERA in 21 starts for the Braves this season. The Braves went on to win Sunday's game against the Yankees 2-1 in extra innings, salvaging the series, but Sale was unable to be in the dugout for the duration of the contest due to his ejection.