Chris Sale dominant again as Braves salvage second game of doubleheader

NEW YORK — Chris Sale continued his strong Cy Young Award candidacy Wednesday with another gem, and the Braves gave him the one run of support he needed in a 1-0 victory over the Mets at Citi Field.

The Braves were able to split Wednesday’s doubleheader, following a 3-2 loss earlier in the afternoon.

“Anytime you’re on a on a winning team, it makes for better baseball, more fun baseball,” Sale said. “You can lose a couple games in a row and you don’t lose that confidence. You still have in the back of your mind at any given time we can kind of snap out of it. Taking one (Wednesday) was big to get out of here with a win.”

Sale allowed just two hits, the fifth time this season he has held an opponent to two hits or less, and fanned nine, the fifth time this season he has struck out at least nine hitters in a game. Sale lowered his ERA to 2.08 after throwing 94 pitches, had the Mets swing and miss at 16 pitches and got ahead of 12 of 20 batters.

The final pitch of the night from Sale was a 98.6 mph fastball that blew past Bo Bichette.

Sale was more amped on the zero next to his walks total than anything.

“Just being efficient, not walking guys. Walks somehow always find a way to score, and they always find a way to kind of come back and bite you,” Sale said. “In a game like this, there was there was no room for error. So just not giving any free passes because you know that’s a good lineup over there, they can make some things happen. So just not giving them anything for free, just trying to throw as many strikes as I could.”

Didier Fuentes, who also pitched during Wednesday’s first game, followed Sale and struck out three hitters in the seventh, and Dylan Lee recorded a 1-2-3 eighth. Closer Raisel Iglesias threw a perfect ninth for his 22nd save of the season.

Along with splitting the doubleheader, the victory allowed the Braves (63-45) to salvage the final game of the three-game series after they had lost the first two. They completed a 3-3 road trip and improved to 16-16 in one-run games. Eleven of the Braves’ past 16 games have been decided by a single run.

“A lot of tight games, man. But we had what I call some gritty wins, especially in Baltimore,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “We’ve been playing well for the most part coming out of the break. Tougher series here, but for the most part, we’ve been playing well.”

A classic pitcher’s duel developed Wednesday evening between Sale and Mets starter Christian Scott. Scott matched Sale through five scoreless innings — but then Braves shortstop Jim Jarvis began the top of the sixth by roping a double into the right field corner. Jarvis broke an 0-for-13 slump with the hit.

Drake Baldwin’s infield hit to the hole between short and third put runners at the corners, and Matt Olson’s one-out single up the middle put the Braves on the board.

Scott (3-3) would get out of the ending, leaving the bases loaded thanks to Mauricio Dubón’s fly out to center field, and completed six innings of work for the first time in 15 starts this season. Scott struck out seven and walked only one batter during his 98-pitch outing.