By MIKE ROBERTS
It was a forgettable week for the Atlanta Braves, who were swept by the Minnesota Twins in three games before beating the Chicago White Sox in a makeup game, and then losing two out of three to the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Brewers, who own the best record in Major League Baseball, are definitely a tough opponent. But unfortunately, it doesn’t get any easier for the Braves, as their next series is against the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers, who’ve won six in a row.
Braves vs. Dodgers is one of those matchups that baseball fans don’t want to miss even if they’re not necessarily a fan of either team. This week, we’ve got a preview of that upcoming three-game series.
See, What Happened Was …
This will be the second Braves-Dodgers series of the 2026 season. The two teams met up in Los Angeles in May with the Braves winning the three-game series 2-1.
In the series opener, former Brave Freddie Freeman homered and Shohei Ohtani hit a go-ahead single as the Dodgers won 3-1. Atlanta’s Michael Harris II (.294 AVG, .811 OPS, 20 HR, 70 RBI, 7 SB) went 4-for-4 in a losing effort. The following day, the Braves picked up a 7-2 victory as Mauricio Dubon (.268 AVG, .705 OPS, 10 HR, 61 RBI, 6 SB), Ozzie Albies (.252 AVG, .725 OPS, 20 HR, 65 RBI, 2 SB), and Jorge Mateo (.240 AVG, .665 OPS, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 10 SB) each had two hits. Meanwhile, pitcher Spencer Strider (4-2, 5.31 ERA, 1.36 WHIP) struck out eight batters and didn’t allow a single run.
The Braves also won the series finale 7-2 thanks to home runs from Drake Baldwin (.268, .795 OPS, 21 HR, 63 RBI, 3 SB) and Matt Olson (.260 AVG, .873 OPS, 36 HR, 77 RBI, 4 SB).
Matchup Breakdown
Both the Braves and Dodgers are division leaders. The 76-55 Braves own a three-game lead in the NL East over the second-place Philadelphia Phillies, who won their ninth straight game on Sunday. Meanwhile the Dodgers (80-51) have a nine-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the NL West.
The Dodgers have the edge when it comes to hitting. They rank second in the league with a .259 batting average while Atlanta ranks 11th (.246). The two clubs are currently tied for seventh in home runs with 167.
Neither team is great at base running. The Braves rank 25th with 63 stolen bases and the Dodgers are 28th with 51 stolen bases.
Both clubs are almost identical in ERA, as Atlanta ranks fifth with a 3.61 ERA and L.A. (3.70) is sixth. Atlanta’s top pitcher remains Chris Sale (12-9, 2.20 ERA, 1.03 WHIP) while Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the ace for the Dodgers.
Series Prediction
The Braves and Brewers are serious title contenders this year. The Dodgers, of course, won the World Series the past two years, and it wouldn’t surprise anybody if they won it all again.
Los Angeles has a four-time MVP in Ohtani, who’s arguably the best player in all of baseball. Sure, the Braves’ roster doesn’t possess any one individual with as much talent as Ohtani has, but they boast a squad full of All-Stars.
So who will win this highly-anticipated series? Although the Braves won their first series earlier this season in Atlanta, expect the Dodgers to get the job done this time. It’s hard to see the Braves winning two series against them during the same season. We’ll see what happens.
Looking Ahead
Next up, the Braves will start a three-game home series against the Dodgers and then remain in Atlanta for a three-game matchup with the Colorado Rockies. Here’s a look at the upcoming schedule, including TV information and probable pitchers:
- Tuesday, 8/25: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV/TBS, Tyler Glasnow (LAD) (3-0, 2.72 ERA, 0.83 WHIP) vs. Bryce Elder (ATL) (8-7, 3.92 ERA, 1.23 WHIP)
- Wednesday, 8/26: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB Network, Eric Lauer (LAD) (8-6, 4.79 ERA, 1.25 WHIP) vs. AJ Smith-Shawver (ATL) (0-0, 6.23 ERA, 1.62 WHIP)
- Thursday, 8/27: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/FS1, Roki Sasaki (LAD) (5-5, 4.42 ERA, 1.30 WHIP) vs. Grant Holmes (ATL) ) (8-5, 3.64 ERA, 1.32 WHIP)
- Friday, 8/28: 7:15 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (COL) vs. TBD (ATL)
- Saturday, 8/29: 4:10 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (COL) vs. TBD (ATL)
- Sunday, 8/30: 1:35 PM, BravesVision/MLB.TV, TBD (COL) vs. TBD (ATL)