Fastball

Braves All-Star Continues to Tap into Old Form By Passing Hall of Famer on Historic List

The Atlanta Braves lost to the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday night despite a strikeout-filled night from All-Star Chris Sale.

Brady Farkas

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale (51) throws against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning at Truist Park on Aug 7.
Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale (51) throws against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning at Truist Park on Aug 7. / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
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The Atlanta Braves lost to the Milwaukee Brewers 8-5 on Wednesday night in a battle of likely playoff teams.

The Brewers rallied to score two runs in the fifth, three in the sixth and two in the eighth to help secure the victory, overcoming an early 2-0 deficit.

It was a weird game overall because Braves' All-Star Chris Sale had incredible stuff, striking out 10 batters, but he lasted just 4.2 innings and also gave up nine hits and two earned runs. He took a no-decision and now owns an ERA of 2.75 for the year.

Despite the mixed performance, he passed Hall of Famer Steve Carlton on an impressive list in baseball history, according to StatsCentre:

Most career double digit strikeout performances by a left handed pitcher - MLB history:
212- Randy Johnson
97- Sandy Koufax
85- @Braves Chris Sale (Via fanning 10 earlier on tonight vs MIL)
84- Steve Carlton
74- Sam McDowell
68- Clayton Kershaw
60- Rube Waddell
54- Mickey Lolich

Those are some of the most dominant lefties in baseball history, so to be on that list is another reminder of how good Sale has been throughout his career. Though he spent much of 2020-2022 injured, Sale has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for more than a decade.

Lifetime, he's 133-83 over a 14-year career with the Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox and Braves. He helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and has won double-digit games in eight different seasons.

Atlanta will take on the Brewers again on Thursday with first pitch coming at 12:20 p.m. ET.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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