Braves’ Sale Expected to Start NLDS Game 3

Braves manager Walt Weiss held Chris Sale out of NLDS Game 2 and used a bullpen game; Atlanta beat the Dodgers 3-2 to tie the series 1-1. Sale, 37, starts Game 3 on Tuesday night against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the 2025 World Series MVP. Sale went 14-9 with a 2.16 ERA and made 25 of 27 regular-season starts with extra rest. He recorded the final four outs in relief in the Oct. 1 Wild Card clincher, a 6-2 win over the Phillies. Six Braves relievers allowed six hits and two runs; Ray Kerr threw 2 2/3 scoreless, Didier Fuentes one run in 3 2/3, and Raisel Iglesias earned his second save. Weiss said the outcome was "satisfying" and "the best-case scenario that we could possibly have" after "screaming" criticism. He said starting Sale in Games 2 and 5 would mean "a diminished Chris Sale twice," and the club wanted "a full-strength Chris Sale" for Game 3. Sale said he told Weiss he was available and "felt confident" to start Game 2, while calling it a team game. Tyler Mahle is expected to start Game 4 on Wednesday night.