D-backs ace Zac Gallen outclassed by Chris Sale in loss to Braves

PHOENIX – In Tuesday’s battle of the aces between Arizona’s Zac Gallen and Atlanta’s Chris Sale, the Braves capitalized on the timing power the Diamondbacks lacked and won 6-2.

Braves outfielder Adam Duvall hit an 0-2 knuckle curveball well over the fence to the left knee, ending Gallen’s appearance in the sixth inning. The Braves took a 5-0 lead with four earned runs at the expense of the D-backs starter, who threw 105 pitches – his most since April 8.

“To be honest, I didn’t necessarily want a swing-and-miss, I wanted a double play,” Gallen said of Duvall’s home run. “I wanted to put it just below the zone. Maybe a slightly different order would have worked in my favor. The number of pitches was going up, for me it was getting towards the end. So I just wanted to make a double play.”

Sale threw 69 pitches in three innings, but nine strikeouts helped him avoid false numbers. The D-backs got two runs on Sale in the sixth inning, but the 2024 All-Star pitcher left four runners in scoring position in the first three innings in what could have been a very different game.

Instead of throwing 98 mph heatballs like he did in his last start at Dodger Stadium, Gallen slowed his velocity to regain control. Fastball velocity dropped to 94 mph on average, closer to normal. He threw more curveballs than fastballs, which worked for most of the evening.

After a 36-pitch second inning marred by poor defense — a passed ball from catcher Gabriel Moreno and a dropped line drive from second baseman Ketel Marte — Gallen threw three scoreless innings, striking out nine batters in a row. Coincidentally, that coincided with Sale striking out five of seven batters, leading to the pitchers’ duel the matchup promised.

“I’ve probably been pitching 90%. I’ve been trying to be a little more in control, not less focused,” Gallen said. “I was a little out of control last start, and the fastball control suffered a little bit. I’m just trying to dial it back a little bit and be in the strike zone. I know I have the speed … if I need to fall back.”

Atlanta opened the sixth inning with a Matt Olson double on a fastball over the middle. Marcell Ozuna hit a low curveball to left and singled on a full count, giving Duvall a turn.

Gallen threw a curveball, a slider and a curveball to Duval at the same spot in the bottom of the zone, and Duvall sent the last pitch back 441 feet.

“I went hitter to hitter,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “Somewhere between 105 and 107 pitches was my ceiling with him. I just felt like he could do it. … I felt like he threw the ball really well. He was two outs away from a good start. Outside of the second inning, he really had things under control, so I felt like that was his game.”

Frustration at Ketel Marte

A run was scored on an error by Marte, a liner by Orlando Arcia that escaped Marte’s net.

Lovullo went into the dugout to talk to Marte, and the All-Star, in frustration, hit him with several bats.

“I went down and talked to him a little bit. I know he’s upset,” Lovullo said. “I think he was upset because he didn’t play right and let the team down in that moment. … He just wanted to clear his head.”

Offensive slows down

The D-backs finished the game with 0 of 5 runners in scoring position, none had multiple hits, and the top four hitters combined to be 3 of 15. Sale walked three hitters to create scoring opportunities, but it was the second consecutive weak day for the offense after such an impressive road trip (50 runs in six games).

Arizona canceled batting practice on Tuesday to give the hitters a chance.

“I think emotionally we’ve come through two series in a row that weren’t easy games,” Lovullo said. “They were very draining games and we played very well. I just think we were a little drained emotionally. So I wanted to get them off the field today and give them a little recharge. Unfortunately, that didn’t work.”

Atlanta secured at least a tie in the series in this four-game set, as the D-backs fell to two games under .500, which was quite a hurdle. Charlie Morton and Max Fried are next in Atlanta’s line, veterans with sub-4.00 ERAs and All-Star pedigrees.

Arizona’s Slade Cecconi will start Wednesday, although an opener is being considered.

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