Sale's 1-0 masterpiece: 11 Ks, a 100-mph heater, and a Dodgers sweep

Chris Sale walked off the eighth with 97 pitches, told the dugout "this is mine," and went back out. Nine innings later the two-time defending champs were swept, the scoreboard still read 1-0, and a 37-year-old left-hander had his first complete-game shutout since June 5, 2019.

Drake Baldwin supplied the run on Yoshinobu Yamamoto's first pitch. Sale supplied everything else: five hits, 11 strikeouts, zero walks, 109 pitches (80 strikes), and a 100.1 mph fastball to Shohei Ohtani that Statcast said was his first triple-digit pitch since July 6, 2018.

One pitch, then nine innings of nothing

Baldwin was not looking for a splitter. He got one anyway and lined it into the Chop House. Fourth leadoff homer of his season, 22nd overall, and — per Elias — the first time a catcher in the Modern Era (since 1900) has led off a 1-0 win with a home run. First time the Braves have won 1-0 on a leadoff shot since at least 1900.

Yamamoto (12-8) was otherwise excellent: four hits, eight punchouts, 6 1/3 innings. It did not matter. Sale (13-9) dropped his ERA to 2.06, second in the majors, and matched a season high with 11 Ks — the 95th double-digit strikeout game of his career, seventh all-time.

The ninth was theater. Freddie Freeman singled leading off. Walt Weiss left him in anyway, with Raisel Iglesias and two other relievers the only arms available. Teoscar Hernández popped up. Pinch-runner Alek Thomas was retired on Miguel Rojas' fielder's-choice grounder. Alex Call struck out. Crowd of 39,650. Final pitch: 98.6 mph.

The heater, the mission, and a name in the clubhouse

Sale got Ohtani twice. Third inning: two sliders and a 100.1 mph heater Ohtani fouled — just the 15th 100-plus pitch of Sale's career. Fifth inning: 99.6 mph, 2-2, well above the zone, swing-and-miss. Baldwin saw the scoreboard hit triple digits and called it one of the top two pitching performances he has seen in the big leagues.

At 37 years and 150 days, Sale became the sixth pitcher since 1900 that old to post 10-plus strikeouts and zero walks in a shutout. The last was his childhood idol, Randy Johnson.

Weiss said the look in his eye was different even for Sale. There was a reason beyond the sweep. Ashley Foss, a 42-year-old family friend whose father has handled Sale's finances for two decades, died Thursday. "She was a huge Braves fan," Sale said. "There's no question, that was her out there."

The bullpen math made the complete game more than a flex. Atlanta had three relievers available. This was the club's first shutout since Max Fried blanked the Marlins on April 23, 2024. Sale has allowed three runs or fewer in 23 of 24 starts and owns a 1.83 ERA over his last 21.

Mookie Betts, who used to catch this from the other dugout in Boston: "Sucks being on this side."

What the sweep actually did

Atlanta 79-55. Los Angeles 80-54. Three straight one-run wins, season series 5-1, one game off the NL's No. 2 seed — the bye that skips the Wild Card round. Ha-Seong Kim, a night after the walk-off, got the start, singled, and stole second while hitting .078. The $20 million bench bat is still a story. Thursday was Sale's.

Rockies are next. Grant Holmes (8-5, 3.64) opens Friday at 7:15 p.m. ET against Tomoyuki Sugano (12-7, 4.96). Holmes has a 2.49 ERA in four August starts and took a no-hit bid into the seventh last time out. Then Giants, then Washington. The calendar gets easier before it gets mean again.

Bird Gang bottom line

Baldwin's homer is the trivia. Sale demanding the ninth with a thin bullpen, a 100-mph pitch to Ohtani, and a family friend's name in his head is the season. The Dodgers came to Truist as the measuring stick. They left swept, and the Braves are a game from the bye. Holmes against Colorado is the hangover test. Win that series and October talk stops being a spreadsheet.

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