Braves Save a 'Fresh' Chris Sale for Game 3, Keeping the Bullpen Door Open for Game 5

The Atlanta Braves looked at the math of starting a tired Chris Sale twice in a playoff series and decided to pass.

Manager Walt Weiss confirmed that Atlanta is holding their ace back for Game 3 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The logic is simple: they would rather have one start from a fully weaponized Sale than two starts from a guy running on fumes.

""We didn’t want to have a diminished Chris Sale twice. It didn’t make sense to us." - Walt Weiss"

"We didn’t want to have a diminished Chris Sale twice," Weiss told reporters, according to Bob Nightengale. "It didn’t make sense to us."

This is the kind of rare, sensible baseball decision that usually gets ignored in October. Managers love to panic-button their aces into Game 2 on short rest, only to watch them give up four runs in the third inning while throwing 89 mph fastballs.

By saving Sale for Game 3 back in Atlanta, the Braves are guaranteeing they have the pitching advantage at home. For anyone looking at the series odds, knowing Sale is fully rested for a pivotal swing game completely changes the math.

But the real kicker is what happens if this series goes the distance. Weiss noted that by resting Sale now, he is officially available to come out of the bullpen in a potential Game 5.

Facing a fresh Chris Sale as a starter is already a nightmare. Having him emerge from the bullpen doors in the late innings of a win-or-go-home game is the kind of cinematic villainy that wins championships. Game 3 just became must-watch television, and Game 5 is officially looming.