Archive · 10 Aug 2026
Chris Sale Ejected After Balk Controversy at Yankee Stadium
Chris Sale is a baseball pitcher for the Atlanta Braves.
He is very good and has won a big award called the Cy Young Award.
On Sunday, he got kicked out of the game before it even started.
He was still upset about something from the day before.
On Saturday, an umpire said Sale broke a rule called a balk.
A balk is a small rule pitchers must follow, and breaking it let the other team's runner score.
Sale thought the call was wrong and argued about it.
The umpire then told him to leave the field.
His manager also got kicked out for arguing.
Sale will have to wait to play again.
Chris Sale was ejected by umpire Dan Merzel before Sunday's first pitch at Yankee Stadium.
Sale was still upset over Saturday's balk call, in which Merzel cited a slight hitch in his right leg.
The balk, the third of Sale's 16-year career, let Spencer Jones score and gave the Yankees a 3-2 lead.
Sale, a hybrid pitcher, must announce whether he is pitching from the windup or the stretch before each pitch.
It was Sale's fourth career ejection and his first in nearly seven years; manager Walt Weiss was also ejected after the balk call.
- Who
- Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale, umpire Dan Merzel, crew chief Dan Bellino, and Braves manager Walt Weiss.
- What
- Sale was ejected before Sunday's first pitch after arguing about a disputed balk call from Saturday's game against the New York Yankees.
- When
- Sunday, before the series finale at Yankee Stadium; the balk occurred during Saturday's game.
- Where
- Yankee Stadium.
- Why
- Sale was frustrated over a balk call that allowed the Yankees to score and take a 3-2 lead; umpires said he failed to announce his pitching delivery as required for hybrid pitchers.
- Player
- Chris Sale
- Team
- Atlanta Braves
- Age
- 37
- Career balks
- 3 (third in his 16-year career)
- Saturday outing
- 3 runs on 5 hits over 6 innings; first loss since June 28
- Season record/ERA
- 12-7 with a 2.20 ERA across 21 starts
- Ejection
- Fourth career ejection; first since Aug. 3, 2019, also at Yankee Stadium
- Balk call impact
- Yankees took a 3-2 lead after Spencer Jones scored