NEW YORK (AP) — Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale was ejected by umpire Dan Merzel before a pitch was thrown in Sunday’s game against the New York Yankees, a day after being called for a balk that scored a run.
As umpires took the field and walked by the Braves' dugout on the third base side, Sale began barking. Merzel tossed him and Sale said something to crew chief Dan Bellino as the two talked near the dugout rail.
“I was by the bat rack because the game was about to start and I was getting my helmet,” center fielder Michael Harris II said after his 10th-inning single gave Atlanta a 2-1 win. “I didn’t see him talking to him, but I actually seen the motion of him throwing him out. I was kind of confused but then I saw Sale and remember what happened yesterday and I put two and two together."
Sale was called for his third career balk by Merzel during the fifth inning of Saturday’s 5-4 loss. Rookie Spencer Jones scored on the balk after getting an RBI triple and Sale began fiercely yelling at Merzel before manager Walt Weiss continued the argument and was ejected.
“I think he had some words for the umpire from yesterday, but you know what, it’s behind us," Weiss said. “Everyone had their say and we move on.”
Bellino told a pool reporter after Saturday's game that Sale was called for the balk because he did not declare he was going to pitch from the windup. Bellino said Sale declared he was pitching from the windup when he struck out José Caballero but did not do so ahead of the at-bat to Austin Wells.
It was Sale’s fourth career ejection. It was his first since Aug. 3, 2019, when he pitched for Boston and was tossed by Mike Estabrook for arguing balls and strikes during the fourth inning of a 9-2 loss at Yankee Stadium.
Sale allowed three runs and five hits in six innings Saturday for his first loss since June 28. In his third season with the Braves, the veteran left-hander is 12-7 with a 2.20 ERA in 21 starts.
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Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale, right, argues with home plate umpire Dan Merzel, second left, during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Bo Bichette went 5 for 5 with a three-run double and scored three times, Luis Robert Jr. homered and drove in four, and the New York Mets routed the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-1 on Sunday.
Sean Manaea pitched seven strong innings and struck out 11, most by a New York starter this season. Francisco Alvarez also went deep and Jared Young had three hits for the last-place Mets, who improved to 5-1 on a nine-game trip following a substantial selloff ahead of last Monday's trade deadline.
Coming off a 9-0 defeat Saturday night, New York turned the tables and outhit Pittsburgh 15-4. Bichette had a bases-loaded double in the fourth that pushed the lead to 8-1. Robert launched a two-run shot in the third, and Alvarez homered leading off the fifth.
Manaea (4-5) allowed only Jake Mangum's homer in the third. The big left-hander gave up three hits and walked none.
Jack Weisenburger, just called up from Triple-A Syracuse, tossed two scoreless innings in his major league debut to finish it.
Pirates starter Jared Jones (2-4) was tagged for eight runs and six hits in three-plus innings. He walked three and hit two batters with pitches as Pittsburgh lost for the fifth time in six games.
Rookie outfielder Carson Benge returned to the Mets’ lineup from a sore left wrist and went 2 for 5 with an RBI single and a walk.
Mets: Travel to Atlanta to open a three-game series Monday night with RHP Christian Scott (3-3, 3.15 ERA) starting against RHP Bryce Elder (8-6, 3.69).
Pirates: Begin a three-game series at Miami on Tuesday night as RHP Paul Skenes (9-10, 3.96 ERA) faces RHP Eury Pérez (5-9, 3.61).
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New York Mets pitcher Jack Weissenburger, right, celebrates with catcher Francisco Alvarez, left, after getting the final out of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jared Jones, left, walks off the mound after handing the ball to manager Don Kelly, second from left, during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
New York Mets' Luis Robert Jr. hits a two-run home run off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jared Jones during the third inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
New York Mets pitcher Sean Manaea delivers during the first inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
New York Mets' Francisco Alvarez, right, is greeted by A.J. Ewing (9) as he returns to the dugout after hitting a solo home run off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Kirby Yates during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
