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The Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-2 in the deciding Game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series on October 1, 2026, at Truist Park. Atlanta won the series and advances to a best-of-five NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers, beginning October 3 at Dodger Stadium.
Braves-Phillies Game 3 score and key moments
Atlanta’s offense struck early: Michael Harris II hit a three-run homer in the first inning. Ozzie Albies and Matt Olson also homered as the Braves built the 6-2 win. The club had to win after losing Game 2, 4-3, when Philadelphia erased Atlanta’s two-run lead in the eighth.
The clinch ended a run of six straight losses by Atlanta in winner-take-all postseason games. The Braves’ recap identifies that streak as the third-longest of its kind in MLB history and notes the team’s previous such win was Game 7 of the 1996 NL Championship Series. Atlanta Braves/MLB.com recap
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Ray Kerr’s unexpected start steadied Atlanta
Ray Kerr, a 32-year-old reliever who was working back from Tommy John surgery in 2024, was at Triple-A Gwinnett six weeks before the clincher. He learned the day before Game 3 that he would open the game. Kerr allowed one hit and no runs over 3 1/3 innings, facing left-handed hitters Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper multiple times. He struck Harper out and later got him to ground out; Schwarber singled and walked.
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Manager Walt Weiss called Kerr’s outing a “best-case scenario,” saying it let Atlanta avoid using another pitcher against the top of Philadelphia’s order so soon. Weiss added: “Hopefully Ray Kerr became a bit of a household name tonight. He deserves it. He’s got an amazing story of perseverance.” Kerr described the pressure simply: “This was just another Thursday. Growing up, I had a hard time. So, this was nothing.” The quotes and account of Kerr’s outing are from the Braves’ game recap.
Chris Sale finished after a heavy Game 2 workload
Atlanta used Grant Holmes, Robert Suarez, Didier Fuentes and Dylan Dodd to bridge the game after Kerr. Chris Sale recorded the final four outs, striking out Harper to end the eighth. Sale had thrown 95 pitches over 6 1/3 innings in Game 2 a little more than 48 hours earlier.
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Sale praised Kerr’s effort, saying, “To do what he did tonight for us, that’s unbelievable. He did everything he could for this ballclub. He put it on the line for us tonight. That fired me up, honestly, and I think it got everyone going.”
When does the Braves-Dodgers NLDS start?
The best-of-five NLDS opens Saturday, October 3, at 1 p.m. PT at Dodger Stadium, with Los Angeles hosting Games 1 and 2 and Game 5 if needed. The Braves’ recap lists the start as 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT and FOX, FOX Deportes and FOX One as the broadcasters; the Dodgers’ official announcement confirms the 1 p.m. PT start. Check the schedule and listings for current details. Dodgers’ NLDS announcement · Braves recap
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- TRADITIONAL RED STITCHING | Classic construction with visible red seams for a timeless baseball appearance.
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What the 2026 regular-season series says—and doesn’t say
Atlanta won five of six regular-season games against Los Angeles in 2026, including a three-game sweep at Truist Park in August, according to the Dodgers’ announcement. That record sets useful context for the matchup, but it does not predict the outcome of a postseason series.
This is the clubs’ sixth postseason meeting and their first since the 2021 NLCS. Their most recent NLDS meeting was in 2018, when the Dodgers won three games to one. Los Angeles enters as the back-to-back World Series champion from 2024 and 2025, as described in the team’s announcement.
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