The Atlanta Braves defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in a winner-take-all Game 3 at Truist Park, eliminating Philadelphia and advancing to the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Outkick on Fox News reported on Oct. 2, 2026.
According to Outkick, the wild-card matchup produced two dramatic early games before the Braves closed the series. In Game 1, with two outs in the bottom of the eighth and Atlanta trailing 3-2, third baseman Austin Riley hit a go-ahead home run that gave the Braves a 5-3 lead; Raisel Iglesias closed the game to give Atlanta a 1-0 series lead.
Outkick reported Philadelphia evened the series in Game 2. The outlet said Bryce Harper misplayed a routine fly ball in the bottom of the seventh that allowed a run to score and set up a sacrifice fly; later, after Kyle Schwarber homered, Harper hit a tying home run in the eighth. Alec Bohm broke the tie with an extra-inning RBI and Andrew Painter recorded the save in the 10th.
For the decisive Game 3, Outkick reported the Braves struck early. After back-to-back walks to Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson, Michael Harris II hit a three-run homer in the first. The outlet said reliever Ray Kerr — with 18 regular-season innings — went 3.1 innings with one hit, one walk, two strikeouts and no runs allowed.
Outkick wrote that Ozzie Albies hit a two-run homer off Zack Wheeler, who was pitching in relief, and Matt Olson added a solo shot in the seventh. The Phillies scored on an Alec Bohm groundout in the sixth and a Trea Turner sacrifice fly in the eighth, and Outkick said Braves manager Walt Weiss used starter Chris Sale to finish the game rather than turning to closer Raisel Iglesias.
Outkick noted the Braves’ victory sets up an NLDS between Atlanta and defending champion Los Angeles, and the outlet discussed the rest advantage the Dodgers received from a first-round bye and Atlanta’s recent stretch of high-intensity playoff games when considering matchup dynamics.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
