Shaikin: Dodgers are forcing Braves to make tough decision about Chris Sale

Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale delivers during the eighth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the National League wild-card playoffs Thursday. (Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
And now we present the forecast for the Atlanta Braves, brought to you by Yogi Berra: It gets late early out there.
The Dodgers can cloud the outlook for anyone. The Braves left Dodger Stadium in an uneasy spot Saturday, with one big decision to make: Do they risk putting themselves in the uncomfortable position of facing three consecutive elimination games without using their best pitcher in the first two games of this National League Division Series, or do they start Chris Sale on Sunday?
“We’re expecting to see him,” Dodgers infielder Tommy Edman said.
The Dodgers have four aces. The Braves have one.
“We’ve got the ace of all aces in Chris Sale,” Braves pitcher Brent Suter said.
So why were the Braves publicly noncommittal about using him?
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The Braves deployed him Thursday, for the final four outs of the deciding game of the wild-card round. He started and pitched into the seventh inning on Tuesday.
The four days between starts is traditional — as is throwing once between starts, albeit generally in a pregame workout — but the 37-year-old Sale has not done that since April.
“The deciding factor is always going to be how Chris is feeling,” Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said. “When we came in the other night, the first words out of his mouth were ‘I feel amazing.’ If he were to come in [Sunday] morning and say ‘I feel amazing,’ there’s a chance he pitches.”
Sale, a 10-time All-Star, posted a 2.16 earned-run average this season, trailing only projected Cy Young winners Jacob Misiorowski and Cam Schlittler. In two appearances against the Dodgers, he posted a 1.13 ERA, with no walks and 18 strikeouts in 16 innings.
“He’s the ace over there, and we’re ready to see him two times this series, regardless of whether he is starting or coming out of the bullpen,” Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas said. “We all know he is going to be out there at some point.
“If it’s [Sunday], we will be ready. If it’s Game 3, we will be ready. If it’s [Sunday] out of the ‘pen, we will be ready.”
Weiss should be concerned. If he is, he would not publicly admit to it.
“To me, it’s not that big a deal when he pitches,” Weiss said. “He’s going to pitch in this series.
“Dodgers can’t win it in two.”
The Braves risk overthinking this. If Sale starts Sunday, he also could start on traditional rest in a potential Game 5. If the Braves hold him back until Game 3, he presumably would not start a potential Game 5 on two days’ rest.
So, if the Braves get that far, would they want to limit Sale to, say, four outs?
“Even if he throws Game 3, I think he’s still available for Game 5 in some way, shape, or form,” Weiss said.
The Dodgers could push Yoshinobu Yamamoto to Game 3 because they had Tarik Skubal and Blake Snell to start the first two games. Money buys you the best of options.
The Braves’ most likely options for Game 2, if Sale does not start: a second consecutive bullpen game, or Grant Holmes, 30, a Dodgers first-round draft pick in 2014, and three years later, part of a three-prospect package sent to the Oakland Athletics for Rich Hill and Josh Reddick.
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The way Weiss looks at it, he can win three out of the next four games with his top two starters (Sale and Tyler Mahle) yet to be used, and all his high-leverage relievers fresh.
The way we look at it, who says the series extends to four or five games? The Braves either try to win with Sale on Sunday, or risk needing to sweep three games started by Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Skubal, in that order. Wouldn’t be prudent.
“We know Sale is their best pitcher,” Rojas said. “So we are ready for him, at some point.”
That point should be Sunday, a little after 5 p.m.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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