Chris Sale’s July was strong enough to earn him another monthly honor.
The Braves ace was named the National League Pitcher of the Month for July, adding to a résumé that already stacks up with the game’s best. It’s the second time he’s won the award with Atlanta and the sixth time overall, after taking it twice with both the Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox.
Sale’s month was built on command and zeroes. MLB’s press release noted that the 13th overall pick in the 2010 Draft turned in three scoreless starts, including 7.0 innings on July 17 against Texas and 6.0 innings in Game 2 of a doubleheader at Citi Field on July 29.
He also logged a rain-shortened 3.0-inning outing on July 10 at St. Louis.
Against the Rangers, he struck out six. Against the Mets, he struck out nine.
In both games, he allowed just two hits and didn’t walk a batter.
That kind of stretch put Sale in rare company. He now has three starts of at least 6.0 scoreless innings while allowing two or fewer hits and no walks, matching Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes for the most such starts in the Majors this year. One of those outings came April 1 against ATH.
Overall, Sale made five starts in July and threw 27 innings. He finished the month with a 2.00 ERA and a 2.21 FIP, while piling up strikeouts at an 11.33 K/9 clip.
He also posted a 1.33 BB/9 and a 0.67 HR/9. The Braves won four of his five starts, with the lone loss coming in that rain-shortened start in St.
Louis.
For Atlanta, it’s another reminder that Sale has been exactly what the club needed on the mound. For Sale, it’s just the latest piece of hardware on a Hall of Fame-worthy track.
In Other News...
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Davitt arrives with a little bit of big league experience already, having made two major league appearances with Chicago before the deal. For the Braves, the rookie is expected to work out of the bullpen, giving them another arm as they reshape the back end of the staff and prepare for the next step in the catching rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Take Another Rotation Gamble With Tyler Mahle
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Jeremy Hefner now gets the challenge of helping Mahle sharpen things up in Atlanta, where the Braves have made it a priority to keep searching for usable innings. Molina had only thrown five innings for the club in 2026, so this is the kind of deal that says the Braves are willing to keep tinkering if they think there is still a path to more reliable starting help. [Read more 🡒]