By MIKE ROBERTS
The Atlanta Braves reclaimed their old territory, as division champions,
Atlanta wrapped up the National League East crown on Sunday, beating the Houston Astros 4-2 in Houston to complete a three-game sweep. The Braves have won the division seven times in the past nine seasons, and now have 24 total division championships in franchise history.
In addition to sweeping the Astros, the Braves lost two of three to the Chicago Cubs in Wrigley Field this past week.
The 92-64 Braves have one week of the regular season left before heading into the playoffs and attempting to win their fourth World Series championship in franchise history and the first since 2021.
Here are three things to think about entering the final week of the regular season.
That’s More Like It
Atlanta officially clinched a postseason berth on Friday, marking the team’s eighth playoff appearance in nine years. It’s been a nice bounceback for the Braves, who got off to a terrible start in 2025, climbed all the way back to .500 in May, then went into another tailspin to finish with a 76-86 record.
Under first-year manager Walt Weiss the Braves have won at least 90 games for the fifth time in the last eight seasons.
Right now the Braves project as the No. 3 seed in the National League; they trail the Dodgers in the overall standings by four games going into the last week. That means Atlanta would host the third wild card in a three-game series next week in the opening round of the postseason. The wild card standings are tight, with the Cubs (87-69) and Padres (87-69) tied, and the Phillies (86-70) one game back. Chicago holds the head-to-head tiebreaker with both San Diego and Philadelphia.
It would be a heated series if the Braves and Phillies end up playing in the wild card round.
Acuña Has Looked Great
When healthy, Ronald Acuña Jr. (.260 AVG, .816 OPS, 20 HR, 55 RBI, 20 SB) is one of the best players in all of baseball. He looked great this past week, recording seven hits, three home runs, and driving in eight runs.
On Tuesday night, Acuña helped the Braves beat the Cubs 6-3, their lone win of the series, after he homered in the sixth inning off Chicago pitcher Kevin Gausman.
Then in Saturday night’s 6-3 win over the Astros, Acuña hit a go-ahead grand slam during the seventh inning. It was his second grand slam this year and the fifth of his illustrious career. It was also his third home run in a span of four games.
Acuña is heating up at the right time and staying healthy, which is fantastic news for the Braves.
Don’t Forget About Yaz
The 2026 Braves have a plethora of All-Stars, and players at that level, which is why they’re one of the top ball clubs in the majors this season. Don’t sleep on outfielder Mike Yastrzemski (.231 AVG, .706 OPS, 12 HR, 40 RBI, 1 SB), who, though not at that level, is definitely an important player for Atlanta.
Yastrzemski homered in both Saturday and Sunday wins in Houston. In a 7-3 loss to the Cubs this past Monday, he was one of the few bright spots for Atlanta, swatting a pinch-hit, two-run homer off reliever Javier Assad during the seventh inning.
Yastrzemski’s home run on Sunday coincided with the 59th anniversary of his grandfather (Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski) hitting his 41st home run and scoring the go-ahead run to keep the 1967 “Impossible Dream” Red Sox in a first-place tie with the Minnesota Twins in an American League pennant race.
Looking Ahead
Next up, the Braves will return home for a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds that starts Tuesday, before ending the regular season on the road against the Miami Marlins in a three-game series beginning on Friday. Here’s a look at the upcoming schedule, including TV information and probable pitchers:
- Tuesday, 9/22: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, Brandon Williamson (CIN) (4-4, 5.56 ERA, 1.67 WHIP) vs. JR Ritchie (ATL) (1-3, 5.03 ERA, 1.47 WHIP)
- Wednesday, 9/23: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, Andrew Abbott (CIN) (6-11, 4.70 ERA, 1.47 WHIP) vs. Chris Sale (ATL) (14-9, 2.18 ERA, 0.99 WHIP)
- Thursday, 9/24: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV/FS1, Brady Singer (CIN) (6-15, 5.67 ERA, 1.56 WHIP) vs. Tyler Mahle (ATL) (6-10, 3.91 ERA, 1.25 WHIP)
- Friday, 9/25: 7:10 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (MIA)
- Saturday, 9/26: 4:10 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (MIA)
- Sunday, 9/27: 3:10 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (ATL) vs. TBD (MIA)