The Braves are chasing a sweep of the Dodgers, and the matchup on the mound makes it feel like anything can happen.
Atlanta has already taken the first two games of the series, which is notable on its own given where the team has been lately. The offense, especially, looked like it had finally shaken off some of its recent sluggishness in last night’s win.
Before that, the Braves had gone seven straight games with a teamwide xwOBA below league average, and most of those were far below it. Then they broke through with a .472 mark, their third-best figure of the season and their highest since April 10.
There’s also a bigger backdrop here: the Braves have not swept the Dodgers since May of 2013. That alone gives this finale some extra juice. Add in the fact that Chris Sale is going right back into an ace-on-ace duel, and the setup gets even better.
Sale is matched up with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is 11th in MLB in pitching fWAR. Sale, meanwhile, is sixth.
Last week, Sale drew Jacob Misiorowski, the current pitching fWAR leader. This time it’s Yamamoto, and the Dodgers right-hander has been steady again in his third season in the majors.
Yamamoto’s numbers are down a bit from his brilliant 2025 campaign, when he posted 60/70/74 ERA-/FIP-/xFIP-. This year, he sits at 63/76/80.
Even with that slight dip, he’s been durable and consistent, and he hasn’t really had a true blowup start. He also hasn’t had back-to-back outings with an FIP- above 100 this season, and that’s only happened once with xFIP-.
Sometimes the peripherals aren’t sparkling, but he usually finds a way through it.
Sale has been doing something similar on the Braves’ side, only with even more eye-popping results. He comes into the start with 53/54/65 and 4.9 fWAR in just 135 innings. It’s been almost a carbon copy of his 2024 Cy Young season so far.
These two clubs have already seen plenty of each other’s frontline arms. Atlanta faced Yamamoto twice last year.
The first meeting was a 9-0 Braves win, and Yamamoto was out after four innings with just a 1-0 lead and a 3/2 K/BB ratio. The second was a tighter game in 2025, when the Dodgers won 2-1 and Yamamoto shut down the Braves’ struggling offense.
The Dodgers, for their part, know Sale well too. They beat him earlier this year in Los Angeles even though he pitched well.
They also got to him during that ugly season-opening road trip in 2025. But Sale answered back with a strong outing in September 2024 and beat them then.
So the ingredients are all there: two aces, plenty of recent history, and a series that has already gone sideways in the best possible way for Atlanta. Expect quality pitching - and maybe something wild anyway.
In Other News...
Braves May Finally Cut Ties With A Left Field Mistake
Jurickson Profars first season with the Braves has been defined less by what he was expected to provide in left field and more by the disruptions that have followed him there. Atlanta brought him in with the idea that he could help stabilize a spot that has long been in flux, but the time since has been shaped by suspensions under Major League Baseballs performance-enhancing drug policy, including one ban of 80 games and another of 162 games after a second positive test.
Now the Braves are staring at the final year of his contract and weighing whether it still makes sense to carry that commitment into another offseason. The situation has pushed left field back onto the front burner, and the possibility of moving on from Profar is becoming part of the conversation as Atlanta looks for a cleaner answer at the position. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Fans May See Ronald Acuna Jrs Dodgers Mistake Differently Now
Ronald Acuna Jr.s rough night against the Dodgers drew plenty of attention in the moment, both for his struggles at the plate and for a defensive hesitation that helped Shohei Ohtani move into scoring position. From the outside, it looked like a lapse from one of Atlantas most dynamic players, the kind of play that can linger when a series is still fresh in everyones mind.
Braves manager Walt Weiss offered a little more context afterward, explaining that Acuna slowed because Matt Olson was not covering first base, which left the play unclear in real time. Weiss framed it as a shared mistake rather than a solo one, a small but important distinction for a team that will want its stars synced up as the games keep coming. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Just Saw A Big Dodgers Pitching Question Emerge
Roki Sasakis latest outing against the Braves ended early when the Dodgers right-hander was pulled in the fourth inning after a blister developed on his middle finger. He had already allowed multiple baserunners before coming out, and Los Angeles confirmed the injury while the game was still in progress.
For Atlanta, the immediate concern is less about one night and more about what comes next for a Dodgers rotation that has leaned on Sasakis talent and upside. The next step is still uncertain, including whether the issue is serious enough to send him to the injured list, which would add another layer of intrigue to a pitching staff already under scrutiny. [Read more 🡒]