Chris Sale delivered a masterful performance on Thursday night, pitching a complete game shutout and striking out 11 batters as the Atlanta Braves secured a 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The win capped a three-game sweep of the reigning champions and marked a significant outing for the veteran left-hander.
Sale, who declared "This is mine" to manager Walt Weiss when he took the mound for the ninth inning, needed just 12 pitches to complete the shutout. His fastball reached triple digits, a feat not seen since 2018, with two of his fastest pitches of the night directed at Shohei Ohtani. This marked Sale's first complete game since 2019, lowering his ERA to 2.06, second only to Milwaukee Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski in the majors. He also extended his streak of starts allowing three runs or fewer to 21.
"You can make an argument that, as great a career as he's having, he's as good now as he's ever been," Weiss said of Sale. "It's mind-boggling."
The emotional weight of the evening was palpable for Sale. He learned before the game of the death of Ashley Foss, a close family friend who had managed his finances for years. Sale spoke after the game about the joy of sharing such moments with his family, noting the unique emotions that come with such a performance. "The family stuff, it's fun just [because], I'm glad I don't see that stuff until after the game [beacuse] that's just so special," Sale told "The Pat McAfee Show."
Despite Sale's dominance, the Dodgers also saw a strong performance from pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The reigning World Series MVP pitched 6.1 innings, allowing the game's only run on a first-pitch solo home run by Braves catcher Drake Baldwin off a splitter. Only one Dodgers player managed to reach scoring position against Sale.
The Braves, now leading the NL East, will host the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series starting Friday night. The Dodgers are scheduled to travel to Detroit to face the Tigers, with pitcher Tarik Skubal set to face his former team for the first time since his trade.