Sale outduels Sánchez, Braves beat Phillies 5-2 and extend lead to 5 games in NL East

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Atlanta’s Chris Sale outdueled Cristopher Sánchez in a matchup of two of baseball’s best pitchers, and the Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-2 on Friday night to extend their lead in the NL East to five games.

Ronald Acuña had three hits and drove in a run and Mauricio Dubón homered for the Braves, who won for the ninth time in 11 games.

Alec Bohm homered and doubled and drove in both runs for the Phillies, who lost for just the fourth time in 19 games.

Sale (14-9) allowed two runs in six innings with seven strikeouts and a walk. He entered second in the NL in ERA, which rose slightly to 2.10.

Sánchez (16-5) remained stuck on 16 victories after surrendering three runs in six innings. He allowed five hits and three walks with five strikeouts.

Atlanta scored three of its runs off Sánchez in the second inning on Austin Riley’s RBI single, Ha-Seong Kim’s groundout, and Acuña’s RBI double.

The Phillies got a run back in the bottom of the inning on Bohm’s RBI double and pulled within 3-2 in the fourth on his one-out solo drive to left.

Philadelphia had runners in scoring position with less than two outs in the fifth and sixth innings, but could not score off Sale.

After Dubón hit a two-run shot in the eighth off Orion Kerkering, Raisel Iglesias pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 30th save.

The teams were meeting for the first time since April 26, when struggling Philadelphia dropped to 9-19 and fired manager Rob Thomson. Since, the two-time defending NL East champion Phillies have gone 70-43 under interim manager Don Mattingly.

Friday’s matchup was the opener of a four-game series and the first of seven games in the next 10 between the clubs.

Bryce Harper went 0 for 4 and had his career-best 35-game on-base streak halted.

Philadelphia second baseman Bryson Stott was a late scratch from the lineup due to personal reasons.

Braves LHP Martín Pérez (8-8, 3.05) opposes Philadelphia RHP Zack Wheeler (11-5, 3.31) on Saturday night.

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Atlanta Braves' Lane Thomas, center, scores past Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto, left, and pitcher Cristopher Sánchez on a single by Austin Riley during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Alec Bohm hits a run-scoring double against Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Atlanta Braves' Ronald Acuña Jr. hits a run-scoring single against Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sánchez during the second inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Phillies' Cristopher Sánchez pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Atlanta Braves' Chris Sale pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shohei Ohtani got a second straight day off Friday while the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar deals with assorted injuries.

Ohtani smiled and laughed in the dugout while watching Thursday's game, going on the field with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates to celebrate a walk-off 3-2 win over St. Louis that avoided a series sweep.

“He was pretty jovial yesterday, which was a good sign, more kind of upbeat than I’ve seen him in months,” manager Dave Roberts said before the Dodgers opened a three-game set against Washington.

Ohtani’s symptoms involving his right biceps, neck and left knee haven’t improved in recent weeks, although Roberts remains noncommital about the possibility of a stint on the injured list.

“Hopeful,” the manager said, "but I wouldn’t say confident.”

The injuries were initially delaying Ohtani's return to pitching, but they're now affecting his hitting. He's batting .279 with 30 home runs and 80 RBIs.

Roberts said Ohtani's hasn't admitted that his performance has been impacted by his injuries.

“What we saw a couple nights ago wasn’t him, so clearly he was not feeling well,” Roberts said.

Ohtani has been “very agreeable” about the team's cautious approach with him.

“He wants to be out there, wants to play," Roberts said, “but he’s understanding that whatever decision we make is the best interest for him and the team.”

Ohtani hasn’t spoken to the media in nearly three weeks.

Center fielder Tommy Edman was in Ohtani’s leadoff spot again against Washington, while Alex Call remained the designated hitter, batting seventh. Edman went 4 for 5 with two runs scored on Thursday.

See AP’s full MLB coverage here

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani checks his iPad in the dugout during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani runs after being walked during the first inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/William Liang)