"Auctioneer" Sale Strikes Out 11, Defies Age at 37 as He Makes Another Strong Push for the Cy Young Award

Chris Sale, known as "Auctioneer," toiled for 14 seasons in the majors to capture his maiden Cy Young Award. Should he sustain his scorching form for the remainder of the summer, the 37-year-old could find himself celebrating a second Cy Young in three seasons.

At Truist Park today, a clear misjudgment by left fielder Mauricio Dubón on a fly ball in the sun ended Sale's streak of 10 consecutive scoreless innings. But after a rocky second inning against the Padres that saw him surrender three runs, the Braves ace quickly regained his dominance, recording his 94th career game with double-digit strikeouts and posting the second-lowest ERA in the majors, leading his team to a 6-5 victory.

"I've been running out of superlatives for him all year, and I'm going to keep doing it," said Braves manager Walt Weiss. "He's the real ace."

Sale pitched six innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out 11. His 2.19 ERA ranks second among all MLB pitchers, trailing only Jacob Misiorowski's 1.57. In the history of pitchers aged 37 or older who have made at least 20 starts in a season with an ERA below 2.20, only Roger Clemens (1.87 at age 42 in 2005) and Justin Verlander (1.75 at age 39 in 2022) have achieved the feat.

Even more astonishing: from 2020 to 2023, Sale was limited to just 151 total innings due to injuries. The 2024 National League Cy Young winner has now matched his prime from 2012 to 2018—the seven-year stretch when he finished in the top six of AL Cy Young voting every season—during his three seasons with Atlanta.

"It defies logic," Weiss said. "He missed so much time in Boston, and then he comes here at this stage of his career and puts up performances like this. It's incredible to see him rejuvenate a career that was already great."

The 37-year-old veteran retired 13 of the final 14 batters he faced, including ending his outing with three consecutive strikeouts. In the Braves' last 36 games, only six times has a starter pitched at least six innings—and Sale has done it three times, accounting for half of those outings.

The win also helped the Braves take three of four in the series against the Padres. Prior to Tuesday, San Diego had won 11 of their last 12 meetings with Atlanta. The Braves lost 19 of 29 games entering the All-Star break, but they have gone 5-2 since the hiatus, extending their lead in the NL East to 4.5 games.

Sale's 94 career games with double-digit strikeouts moved him past Curt Schilling into sole possession of seventh place on the all-time list. Ahead of him are only Nolan Ryan (215), Randy Johnson (212), Max Scherzer (114), Roger Clemens (110), Pedro Martinez (108), and Sandy Koufax (97).

Sale earned his 11th win of the season, supported by solo home runs from Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies. Dominic Smith added a go-ahead three-run homer in the fourth inning, and Drake Baldwin delivered a decisive home run in the seventh.

If not for a seemingly lazy fly ball hit by Freddy Fermin in the second inning that turned into a misplay, Sale's numbers would have been even more impressive, potentially lowering his ERA below 2.00. But Sale took full blame for the three runs the Padres scored in that frame.

"I thought I really messed up and put my teammates in a bad spot," Sale said. "It just happened. My job after that was to do everything I could to prevent them from scoring any more, even though I couldn't erase those three runs." Dubón hesitated on the high fly ball, first moving back, then charging forward, and the ball dropped in front of him. If he had caught it, Jase Bowen's infield fly would have been the third out of the inning.

However, before recording what should have been the third out, Sale hit Jake Cronenworth with a pitch on a 1-0 count, then fell behind Fernando Tatis Jr. before walking him with the bases loaded to force in a run. Then, with a 2-0 count, Luis Rengifo ripped a two-run single on a knee-high pitch.

"I didn't help my teammate Dubón," Sale said. "I hit a guy, walked a guy, then gave up a hit on a 2-0 count. That's plenty to be mad at yourself about." During that disastrous second inning, Sale's emotions may have briefly affected his performance against a batter or two. But he quickly refocused in a more effective way, continuing his pursuit of a second Cy Young Award.

"He'll go out there and battle, that's who he is," Weiss said. "No matter what obstacles he faces, he does what he needs to do. He might lose his composure for a moment, but then he's right back on the mound, giving it everything he's got. He's just different."