ATLANTA -- Having an opportunity to make both of his past two starts with two extra days of rest has enabled Chris Sale to throw his fastball as hard as he has since the end of the 2018 season. This extra rest could also prove beneficial as the Braves attempt to lean on the seasoned veteran down the stretch, and possibly into late October.
But a high-octane heater and effective slider didn’t prevent Sale from feeling some frustration as he surrendered his highest hit total since 2021 in the Braves’ 7-2 loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday night at Truist Park.
“You’ve got to chalk it up to just being one of those days, really,” Sale said. “I just felt like anything that got put in play was a hit. My command was in and out at times. My stuff was pretty good, but it just seemed like they always found holes.”
This was an odd outing for Sale, whose four-seamer has now averaged exactly 97 mph in both of his past two starts. This is the highest average velo he has produced in any games since the start of 2019.
But even with heater humming, the 37-year-old lefty allowed 10 hits for the first time since surrendering this same total on Sept. 6, 2021. Five of the hits he surrendered had an exit velocity below 85 mph, and three came off the bat at less than 75 mph.
“The Blue Jays did what they do. They put the ball in play with a lot of seeing-eye hits and some soft singles,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said.
Sale surrendered three runs over 5 2/3 innings, marking just the second time in 12 starts that he has allowed more than two earned runs. Still, the Braves were within one run before Reynaldo López allowed four runs in the ninth.
While he kept the Braves in the game, Sale was bothered by some inconsistent command and his inability to go deeper into the game. The two extra days of rest have certainly helped his arm strength these past two outings. But despite limiting the Red Sox to two runs May 28 at Fenway Park, he also was bothered by the fact he lasted just five innings.
“We’ve got some guys that are shuffling around to give me some more rest,” Sale said. “I wish I was able to reward our guys a little bit more. You get seven days off, you better at least get through the sixth.”
When Sale labored last week in Boston, he was attempting to battle without an effective slider. He found more consistency with the breaking ball on Thursday. The Blue Jays whiffed on 11 of 25 swings against the slider.
Oddly, even with Sale’s increased velo, the Blue Jays whiffed with just 11% (2-of-18) of their swings against his four-seamer. This is a pitch that had generated a 23.8% whiff rate in the previous 11 starts.
Most of Sale’s frustration was felt during the third, which began with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lining a one-out double to the right-field wall and advancing to third base when Kazuma Okamoto followed with a soft infield single. The Blue Jays added two more hits during the three-run frame, including the 107.7 mph RBI single Charles McAdoo laced against a changeup.
“I think there’s some things that I might need to fine-tune a little bit,” Sale said. “It seems like there's times throughout the game where the command is just gone, and it's almost impossible to find.”
The Braves will likely need to promote No. 2 prospect JR Ritchie or another Minor Leaguer to ensure Sale gets at least one day of extra rest before his next start. But it’s not like the seasoned southpaw couldn’t go on regular rest if necessary. Sale made his second and third starts of the season without any extra rest. He limited the A’s to one run over six innings on April 1, though he allowed six runs over four innings against the Angels on April 6.
Regardless of the decision, the Braves will continue to give Sale extra rest whenever possible over the remainder of the season, with the hope that his arm responds in the impressive manner he has during these past two outings.
“I think the important thing is that his body's good, his arm is good and he feels fresh every time out,” Weiss said.