Chris Sale puts bow on memorable 2026 regular season

Chris Sale was tentatively scheduled to pitch just five innings Wednesday in his final tuneup before postseason baseball. But against the Reds at Truist Park, with Sale and the Braves trailing 1-0 to start the sixth inning, Sale popped out of the dugout and made the slow trot to the mound.

He needed one more strikeout to fan 10 batters on the night, and that one final strikeout would give him 200 for the season.

“For some weird reason, we in the baseball world, we love even numbers,” Sale said. “We love 10, we love 100, we love 200. Is 199 that much less cool than 200? I don’t know. But we just we love kind of setting benchmarks. So I appreciate it. I’m thankful for the people that got me here. I’m thankful for being able to do it.”

Sale battled Elly De La Cruz and got a fly ball to right for the inning’s first out. Then, after falling behind Sal Stewart, the National League’s likely rookie of the year, Sale got a called third strike on an inside fastball. Braves manager Walt Weiss emerged from the dugout to inform Sale his night was done.

The 39,680 at Truist Park rose to their feet to shower Sale with applause. He walked toward the dugout and doffed his cap to the crowd.

“That was special,” Sale said.

Wednesday night was another one to remember for Sale in a remarkable season that won’t long be forgotten:

• The 10 strikeouts against the Reds gave him five double-digit strikeout games in 2026 and 96 for his career (the fifth-most in MLB history).
• He finished with a 2.16 ERA, his lowest since 2018 (2.11), and a 0.98 WHIP.
• Sale logged 17 starts, including Wednesday, in which he walked one batter or less, and 16 starts in which he allowed one run or less.
• He has allowed three runs or less in 24 straight starts, a franchise record.
• Since 1921, only four pitchers age 37 or older have posted an ERA lower than Sale’s 2.16: Justin Verlander (1.75 in 2022), Roger Clemens (1.87 in 2005), Dazzy Vance (2.08 in 1928) and Spud Chandler (2.10 in 1946).
• He finished with the fifth-lowest ERA by a Braves pitcher since 1920: Greg Maddux (1.56 in 1994 and 1.63 in 1995), Phil Niekro (1.87 in 1967) and Warren Spahn (2.10 in 1953).

There are dozens of other notable numbers to Sale’s season in which he made 27 starts and completed 162 2/3 innings. You won’t find him studying those stats too much, however.

“I appreciate numbers, I appreciate the history of this game, and all the guys that came before me,” he said. “I try not to get too hung up on things like that because at the end of the day, this is a team game. You don’t want to get too wrapped up in what you’re doing or an achievement that doesn’t really help the team a whole lot.”

Sale’s final regular-season start, truth be told, got off to an inauspicious start.

Reds’ leadoff hitter Juan Brito hit the fifth pitch of the game out to dead center for a solo home run, just the 10th homer Sale had allowed all season.

But Sale responded by getting a pair of strikeouts in the first and then striking out the side in the second. His strikeout of Oswaldo Cabrera moved Sale into 26th on MLB’s all-time strikeout list and sixth all-time among left-handed pitchers. Sale now has 2,779 career Ks.

Sale ran into trouble in the fourth after he hit Eugenio Suarez on the hand and then gave up a bloop single to right to Matt McClain. Catcher Drake Baldwin bailed him out by throwing out McClain as he tried to steal second.

In 5 2/3 innings, Sale threw 67 strikes on 97 pitches and averaged 97.8 mph on his fastball, with a maximum velocity of 99.9 mph. The Reds swung and missed at 23 pitches and Sale also got 13 called strikes.

“That was a fun night. Energy throughout,” Sale said. “I told myself before this game that I really wanted to kind of go into this making it feel like a playoff game, getting locked in and just really trying to put my best foot forward there.

“I had some time off, so I was able to kind of sharpen the sword a little bit and work on some things and kind of iron some things out that had kind of gotten a little off the rails.”

Sale’s attention now turns to the postseason, where he hasn’t pitched since Oct. 20, 2021, as a member of the Red Sox against the Astros in the American League Championship Series. Sale has made seven career postseason starts, but none with the Braves since joining the club ahead of the 2024 season — back spasms held him out of the ’24 playoffs and the Braves didn’t qualify a year ago.