Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale was ejected from Sunday afternoon’s game at Yankee Stadium, although he wasn’t scheduled to pitch. The incident occurred when Sale confronted umpire Dan Merzel, expressing anger over a balk call from the previous night’s game.
As the umpires walked onto the field for the series finale between the Braves and New York Yankees, Sale vocally criticized Merzel from his position in the dugout. This happened before Yankees starter Cam Schlittler threw his first pitch. Merzel, not pleased with the situation, promptly ejected Sale from the game. Despite the ejection, Sale continued to argue as he addressed Dan Bellino, the crew chief.
Balks are uncommon for Sale, who had only two in his career before Saturday’s game. However, Merzel called him out for a third in the fifth inning. This allowed Yankees rookie Spencer Jones to score, having hit an RBI triple just before. The run contributed significantly to the Yankees’ 5-4 win. Braves manager Walt Weiss was also ejected during the dispute on Saturday. He intervened to argue with umpires on Sale’s behalf.
“He didn’t declare he was pitching from the windup,” Bellino explained, “which led to the balk call.”
Sale’s performance that night ended with three earned runs on five hits over six innings. It marked his first loss since late June. Despite this, Sale has had a strong season, maintaining a 2.20 ERA over 21 starts with the Braves, the leaders of the NL East.
The Braves managed to secure a 2-1 win in extra innings on Sunday, though Sale couldn’t witness the victory from the dugout due to his ejection.
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