Chris Sale found himself at the center of controversy Sunday before the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees had even thrown a pitch.
The Braves’ veteran left hander was ejected before the start of Sunday’s game at Yankee Stadium after continuing to argue with umpire Dan Merzel over a controversial balk call from Saturday’s matchup. Sale wasn’t scheduled to pitch Sunday, making the unusual ejection even more surprising.
The tension began during Saturday’s game, when Sale was called for a balk in the fifth inning. The call helped the Yankees take the lead, and Sale and Braves manager Walt Weiss strongly disagreed with the decision. Weiss was eventually ejected during the game after arguing the call.
The dispute clearly wasn’t over.
As the umpires took the field Sunday, Sale reportedly continued expressing his frustration toward Merzel, who was working as the third-base umpire. After an exchange between Sale and the umpiring crew, Merzel ejected the pitcher before the game officially began.
Crew chief Dan Bellino later explained the reasoning behind Saturday’s balk. According to Bellino, Sale failed to declare his pitching stance while switching between the windup and stretch positions with runners on base. The rule requires pitchers using a hybrid delivery to clearly establish which position they are using.
Sale’s ejection quickly became one of the strangest moments of the Braves’ series against New York. He wasn’t in the starting lineup and wasn’t scheduled to pitch, yet he was still removed from the game before the first pitch.
Despite the unusual start to the afternoon, Atlanta managed to finish the job on the field. The Braves defeated the Yankees 2-1 in 10 innings, earning a dramatic victory to close out the series.
For Sale, however, Sunday’s story was about something completely different.
The veteran ace managed to get himself ejected from a game he wasn’t even pitching in.
In a sport where emotions can run high, Sale’s pregame ejection was certainly one of the more unusual scenes of the season.
