Braves beat Phillies 6-2 in decisive Game 3 at Truist Park to advance
Michael Harris II hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Ray Kerr threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings as the Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-2 at Truist Park on Thursday night in the decisive Game 3 of their National League wild-card series. The 6-2 result ended the best-of-three series.
Ozzie Albies hit a two-run homer in the fourth and Matt Olson added a solo shot in the seventh as Atlanta provided the bulk of its offense via the long ball. The Braves won a postseason series for the first time since winning the 2021 World Series and recorded their first playoff series victory over the Phillies, who had prevailed in the 1993 NLCS and the 2022 and 2023 NLDS.
Phillies starter Aaron Nola was removed after allowing three runs in 1 2/3 innings; he walked Ronald Acuña Jr and Matt Olson with one out in the first before surrendering Harris’s three-run homer. Harris had hit into two double plays in Wednesday’s 4-3 loss in 10 innings, which forced Thursday’s decisive contest.
Kerr made his postseason debut in only his fourth career start after being chosen so Atlanta would have a left-hander to face left-handed hitters Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper at least once, manager Walt Weiss said. Kerr allowed only one hit — to Schwarber in the first — and one walk — to Schwarber in the fourth; right-hander Grant Holmes followed Kerr and allowed one run in two innings to earn the win.
Left-hander Chris Sale, who started Atlanta’s 5-3 win in Tuesday’s series opener, struck out Harper to end the eighth inning and closed out the victory in the ninth by striking out Bryan De La Cruz and pinch-hitter Otto Kemp. Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler walked Austin Riley in the fourth before giving up Albies’ homer to right field that made it 5-0, and Wheeler finished with two runs allowed in four innings. Jonathan Bowlan, Philadelphia’s fourth pitcher, yielded Olson’s homer to center field.
Kerr, 32, had appeared in only nine games after being recalled by Atlanta on 16 August; he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2024 and did not pitch in 2025. Philadelphia’s 2022 World Series loss to Houston began a run of five straight postseason appearances that ended with progressively earlier exits — the NL Championship Series, two NLDS eliminations and now this wild-card defeat.
The game drew a sellout crowd of 41,731 after the Braves failed to reach sellouts in the first two games of the series; announced attendance at Truist Park was 30,127 on Tuesday and 37,150 on Wednesday. The club noted that a 2.15pm first pitch on earlier days conflicted with school and work for many fans, and afternoon starts also hurt attendance in other Wild Card Series games this week.
The Braves advance to a best-of-five Division Series against the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.