Sale was born at Broughty Ferry, Angus, Scotland.
He made his debut for Derbyshire in the 1908 season in August 1908 and scored 31 in his second innings in a victory against Hampshire.
Sale was a left-hand batsman and played 70 innings in 39 first-class matches, with a top score of 69 and an average of 14.13.
He was a right-arm fast-medium bowler who took 10 first-class wickets in all at an average of 47.10 and a best performance of 2 for 25.
[1] Sale became a schoolmaster at Shrewsbury School and ran the junior OTC during World War I.