Braves Complete Sweep of Dodgers with Sale’s Stellar Shutout Performance
ATLANTA — Chris Sale delivered a dominant performance, striking out 11 batters in a five-hit shutout, leading the Atlanta Braves to a narrow 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night. With this win, the Braves achieved a three-game sweep of the series.
Sale (13-9) commanded the game without issuing a walk, marking his fourth double-digit strikeout game of the season and the 95th of his career, placing him seventh on the all-time list.
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The sellout crowd of 39,650 erupted in cheers as Sale took the mound for the ninth inning, despite relievers being ready in the Atlanta bullpen. Braves manager Walt Weiss opted to keep his ace on the field even after Freddie Freeman led off the inning with a single.
Teoscar Hernández popped out, and pinch-runner Alek Thomas was thrown out at second on Miguel Rojas’ fielder’s-choice grounder, setting the stage for Sale to strike out Alex Call, completing his 17th career game and his first complete game since 2019 while with Boston.
Drake Baldwin opened the scoring with a leadoff homer against Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (12-8), hitting the first pitch into the right-field Chop House restaurant. This marked Baldwin’s fourth leadoff home run of the season and his 22nd overall. Despite the loss, Yamamoto pitched effectively, allowing only four hits and recording eight strikeouts over 6 1/3 innings.
The Braves, currently leading the NL East, secured the season series against the Dodgers with a 5-1 record, while Los Angeles remains at the top of the NL West.
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Before the game commenced, Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki was placed on the 15-day injured list due to a blister on his right middle finger, prompting Los Angeles to recall right-hander Seth Halvorsen from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Up next
Dodgers: LHP Tarik Skubal (8-7, 2.91 ERA) is set to make an emotional return to Detroit for the series opener against the Tigers on Friday night.
Braves: RHP Grant Holmes (8-5, 3.64 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound when the Braves begin a three-game series against RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (12-7, 4.96) and the Colorado Rockies.
ATLANTA — Chris Sale struck out 11 in a five-hit shutout, Drake Baldwin launched a leadoff homer against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and the Atlanta Braves edged the Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0 on Thursday night to complete a three-game sweep.
Sale (13-9) did not walk a batter. The left-hander posted his fourth double-digit strikeout game this season and the 95th of his career, which ranks seventh all-time.
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Fans in the sellout crowd of 39,650 cheered when Sale strolled out to the mound for the ninth inning even though relievers were ready in the Atlanta bullpen. Braves manager Walt Weiss stuck with his ace after Freddie Freeman singled leading off the ninth.
Teoscar Hernández popped out, pinch-runner Alek Thomas was out at second on Miguel Rojas’ fielder’s-choice grounder and Sale struck out Alex Call for his 17th complete game and first since 2019 with Boston.
Baldwin lined the first pitch from Yamamoto (12-8) into the right-field Chop House restaurant. It was Baldwin’s fourth leadoff shot this season and 22nd homer overall. Yamamoto allowed only four hits with eight strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings.
The NL East-leading Braves won the season series 5-1 against the Dodgers, who sit atop the NL West.
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Braves shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, hitting .078, was rewarded with a start after his game-winning, pinch-hit single with two outs in the ninth inning of Wednesday night’s 6-5 win over the Dodgers. Kim singled and stole second base in the third.
Before the game, Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki was placed on the 15-day injured list after exiting Wednesday night’s game with a blister on his right middle finger. Los Angeles recalled right-hander Seth Halvorsen from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Up next
Dodgers: LHP Tarik Skubal (8-7, 2.91 ERA) will make what is expected to be an emotional Detroit homecoming when he starts Friday night’s series opener at the Tigers.
Braves: RHP Grant Holmes (8-5, 3.64 ERA) is scheduled to start when the Braves open a three-game series against RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (12-7, 4.96) and the Colorado Rockies.
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