Chris Sale didn’t throw a single pitch Sunday at Yankee Stadium, but the Atlanta Braves starter still managed to get ejected.
And he wasn’t even pitching.
Sale was tossed before the first pitch of the Braves’ game against the New York Yankees following an intense exchange with the umpiring crew from Atlanta’s dugout. Television cameras showed Sale talking with plate umpire Dan Bellino, who was leaning over the dugout railing as the discussion unfolded.
The rest of the crew was close enough to hear what was being said. Eventually, third-base umpire Dan Merzel had heard enough and motioned that Sale was ejected.
The timing made the scene especially unusual. The Yankees were already in position defensively. New York starter Cam Schlittler was standing on the mound, and Braves leadoff hitter Drake Baldwin was nearly ready to step in and begin the game.
Saturday’s Balk Call Started the Trouble
Instead, Sale’s lingering frustration from Saturday apparently followed him into Sunday.
The trouble began during Sale’s start in Atlanta’s 5-4 loss to New York one day earlier. In the fifth inning, Sale was called for a balk that allowed Spencer Jones to score from third base with one out. The inning had already become contentious after Sale had two pitches initially called strikes reversed to balls.
Braves manager Walt Weiss came out to dispute the balk call and was ejected for arguing. Sale also voiced his displeasure.
Afterward, Weiss made it clear that he strongly disagreed with the decision.
“Sale declared the hitter before that he was going out of the windup,” Weiss said, according to the Associated Press. “He said he did not declare after that. He’s never done that in his career, so it’s a terrible call. I always try to show the umpires respect, and they know that, but you can’t make that call right there.”
Merzel, who was working behind the plate Saturday, had explained that Sale went to the windup without declaring his intention to the umpire for that particular batter. Weiss disputed that interpretation.
The tension didn’t disappear overnight.
Before Sunday’s game could begin, Sale was back in a heated conversation with the crew, this time from the dugout. Merzel ultimately made the ejection signal, ending Sale’s afternoon before the Yankees could deliver their first pitch.
Yankee Stadium Sees Another Sale Ejection
It marked the fourth ejection of Sale’s career and his first since Aug. 3, 2019. That previous ejection also happened at Yankee Stadium, when Sale was pitching for the Boston Red Sox and argued balls and strikes against the Yankees.
Sale has had other memorable moments when his temper boiled over. Perhaps the most famous came in 2016 with the Chicago White Sox, when he cut up the team’s throwback jerseys because he did not want to pitch in them. The White Sox suspended him following the incident.
Sunday’s episode was different. Sale wasn’t on the mound, wasn’t in the lineup and didn’t have to wait for the game to begin before being sent away by the umpiring crew.
Braves Pregame Ejections Have Happened Before
As strange as Sunday’s scene was, Major League Baseball has seen pregame ejections before.
Then-Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price was ejected in 2015 while arguing with an umpire as he brought out the lineup card before a game against Cleveland.
In 2024, then-San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin was tossed before the opening pitch against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Melvin later offered a straightforward explanation: “I just talked too much.”
Sale’s ejection came under different circumstances, with an argument from the previous day still hanging over the Braves and the umpiring crew. Saturday ended with Weiss getting tossed and Atlanta losing by one run. By Sunday, the dispute had lasted long enough that Sale’s day was over before the game itself had even started.
