Chris Sale threw a complete-game, 1-0 shutout as the Atlanta Braves swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in a tightly contested three-game series. The 37-year-old’s performance reinforced his status as one of baseball’s leading pitchers and strengthened his case in the National League Cy Young Award race.

Sale struck out 11, reached triple digits with two pitches for the first time since 2018, and completed his first full game since 2019 after 109 pitches. His ERA fell to 2.06 and his run of starts allowing three runs or fewer extended to 21; the outing also came after he learned before the game that a close family friend had died of cancer. Drake Baldwin’s solo home run provided the only run, while Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed just one run in 6.1 innings.