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There's not much that can dampen the mood for a Major League Baseball team when they clinch the playoffs, but the injury update the Atlanta Braves got on Chris Sale just might do it.
Hours after the Braves scratched Sale from their must-win Game 162 on Monday, manager Brian Snitker told reporters that he “does not expect” Sale to pitch in their National League Wild Card series this week against the San Diego Padres.
Sale initially told team personnel that he was experiencing back spasms on Monday. The club remained hopeful that he would be able to start game 2 of their doubleheader against the New York Mets if needed.
After the Mets won the first game in unforgettable, come-from-behind fashion to earn a trip to the postseason, the Braves still hoped to turn to Sale in the do-or-die second game.
He had not pitched since leaving his start with back pain on September 19. Snitker left open the possibility of him pitching in the week-plus since then, but Monday presented their first elimination game.
“There were days that he would show up and everything would be good, and he's like, ‘I'm good,’” Snitker explained, according to Mark Bowman of MLB.com. “So we were going to wait for an elimination game. But I don’t think he felt great last night when he [increased his effort level] while throwing.”
Needing a win to advance to the postseason, the Braves instead turned to Grant Holmes, who pitched four scoreless innings with seven strikeouts in a 3-0 win.
Chris Sale was ‘crushed' to miss Braves' regular season finale
Despite his back pain, Sale still almost made his start. Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopolous admitted that the team deliberated before ultimately deciding to send Holmes to the mound.
Holmes pitched 1.2 innings the day before and learned only 30 minutes before game time that he would be the starter.
“[Sale] is crushed,” Anthopoulos said. “There was a little bit of, ‘Should he go out there or not?' But ultimately at the end of the day, if you’re not at your best and you don’t ultimately believe you can help your team and you can hurt yourself, it’s not a good outcome across the board.”
Sale ended his 2024 regular season as the frontrunner for the National League Cy Young Award. In 29 starts, he went 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA, 225 strikeouts, and a 2.09 FIP — all league bests.
“We’re hoping, with some more rest, we can get him right and get to the next round,” Snitker said.
If the Braves advance to the NLDS, they will begin that series on Saturday.
