ATLANTA -- Chris Sale exited his April 13 start in Tampa and said, “I just hate sucking, and I’m just bad.” When asked about his performance in the Braves' win over the Twins on Saturday, the 2024 National League Cy Young Award winner said, “I [freakin’] sucked.” If Sale were injured, he might better understand why he has a 6.17 ERA through five starts or why he has completed fewer than five innings in each of his past three starts after doing so just twice all of last season. But he feels good physically, and his velocity has been back to normal in the past two starts. “I feel like I'm close, but no one cares about that,” Sale said. “This is a game of results. Until I go out there and get good results, nothing I say up here really matters.” When Sale labored through his first three starts, the assumption was he would be fine as long as his velocity got back to normal. He didn’t have his best stuff, but he still limited the Dodgers to one run through the first five innings of his April 1 start at Dodger Stadium. This was just a few rough starts, right? |
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Well, Sale’s four-seamer averaged 93.1 mph in that start against the Dodgers and 92.7 mph when he allowed five runs over 4 2/3 innings against the Phillies on April 8. This pitch averaged 93 mph in two starts last September, including what proved to be his last outing before back discomfort ended his season. Sale’s four-seamer averaged 96.2 mph when he allowed four runs (three earned) over 4 1/3 innings against the Rays on April 13, and it averaged 94.5 mph as he limited the Twins to two runs over 4 1/3 innings on Saturday. His 2024 average was 94.9 mph. As for Sale throwing three pitches that ranged from 90-91 mph in Saturday’s fifth inning, he considered those to be a “few misfires.” His final four-seamer was 94.5 mph. So, he’s healthy, right? |
Well, Sale’s arm angle has sat around 7 degrees, as opposed to 11 degrees last season. Is the lower arm angle a sign that his back or left arm is limiting him? The 36-year-old pitcher has adamantly said he is healthy. Whatever the reasoning, the lower arm slot has created less reliability with fastball command and the effectiveness of his slider. Opponents have hit .536 and produced a .893 slugging percentage against the southpaw's slider thus far. Even the expected batting average (.370) and expected slugging percentage (.630) with this pitch have been ugly. Still, as Sale notched eight strikeouts on Saturday, he showed glimpses he might be close to where he needs to be. “He’s probably got some doable stuff to work through,” manager Brian Snitker said. “I don’t think it’s that he doesn’t feel good. I think it’s all stuff he can control and right.” |
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MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
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Who was the most recent Braves player to strike out five times in five plate appearances during one game? A) Justin Upton B) Jason Heyward C) Josh Donaldson D) Jeff Francoeur |
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The Braves surprised many when they signed Alex Verdugo on March 20, three days before ending the Florida portion of their Spring Training schedule. But Verdugo became an obvious part of the team’s plans a little more than a week later, when Jurickson Profar was handed an 80-game suspension after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Without Profar, the Braves had a glaring hole in left field and more importantly the leadoff spot. Verdugo provided some hope when he tallied four hits, including a game-winning single, in Saturday’s win. Maybe he was motivated by the fact he went from being an everyday player in the World Series to unemployed until the end of Spring Training. |
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When Drake Baldwin delivered the pinch-hit game-winning single in Friday night’s comeback win over the Twins, he showed the value of being able to use his left-handed bat in any late-inning situation. But with Sean Murphy playing well enough to justify being behind the plate at least four out of every five games, will there be enough plate appearances to justify keeping Baldwin at the big league level? Baldwin provided a great answer when asked about this. “Just being realistic, I knew [being sent down] was kind of a possibility,” he said. “That was motivation for me to be as ready as I can be for when these moments come up, just to prove to them that I can stay in this spot.” |
One of this season's top giveaway items will be available on Tuesday night, when the Braves distribute Chipper Jones 2000 All-Star Game bobblehead dolls. You can purchase tickets here. |
Matt Olson tallied his 1,000th hit on Saturday night. He is one of 22 first basemen who have totaled both 1,000-plus hits and 260-plus home runs through their 31-year-old season. The only other active player to do this is Olson’s predecessor, Freddie Freeman. |
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B) Heyward did this on June 4, 2010, at Dodger Stadium. Francoeur and Andruw Jones both did so during the 2007 season. They became the club’s first players to do this since David Justice accomplished the feat during a 1993 game. |
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