There will be no rubber match this time for the Braves, with the series already in hand entering Thursday’s home finale against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Instead, Atlanta is going for its first sweep since early May. And it’ll be doing it with its ace on the mound.
Chris Sale (8-3, 2.01 ERA) gets the start for the Braves as they turn the page from Toronto to the Pittsburgh Pirates this weekend.
Just past a third of the way through the season, Sale isn’t really in the conversation at the moment to win his second Cy Young in three seasons with the Braves.
However, that has much more to do with what other pitchers (Jacob Misiorowski, Cristopher Sanchez, Shohei Ohtani) are doing than what he isn’t. His ERA and hits/nine are lower than they were in 2024 — although his FIP is higher (2.91 to 2.09) — and he continues to be a stabilizing force on the mound for Atlanta.
He’s allowed two or fewer earned runs in eight straight starts, finishing May with a 1.69 ERA and 0.97 WHIP.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone what his Statcast profile looks like:
Toronto will use Mason Fluharty (3-0, 3.97) as an opener for the Blue Jays.
The left-hander threw two-thirds of an inning of scoreless relief in Tuesday’s series opener. He’s tied for the major league lead with 32 appearances this season and has allowed one total run over 11 2/3 innings and 16 appearances since the start of May.
After that, things seem to be trending towards a prospect making his major league debut as the bulk pitcher behind Fluharty. Chad Dallas was in Atlanta on the Toronto taxi squad Wednesday and was promoted to the major league roster on Thursday.
A former fourth-round pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, the right-hander has an 0-3 record and 4.50 ERA in 10 games (eight starts) this season at Triple-A Buffalo. He has 38 strikeouts to 13 walks in 36 innings, allowing just two home runs.
We’ll find out soon enough how the Blue Jays approach their pitching as they look to salvage a game and if the Braves can deny that opportunity.
Game Time: Thursday, June 4th, 7:15 pm EDT
Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA
Radio/Audio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan
