ATLANTA, GEORGIA – SEPTEMBER 30: Tyler Mahle #54 of the Atlanta Braves throws the ball to home plate against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning in game two of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welp, you kinda just knew that this was going to be in the future for these clubs, huh?
After another close game was decided on a knife’s edge, the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies are heading to a winner-take-all Game 3 in the Wild Card Series. There were twists and turns but at the end of the day, the three guys who the Braves couldn’t let beat them ended up beating them. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper went back-to-back against Dylan Lee in the eighth inning (right after the Braves took the lead) and then Alec Bohm bopped one out against Didier Fuentes in the tenth inning to essentially decide the contest.
For the first seven-and-a-half innings, it seemed like the Braves were going to snatch another one. Tyler Mahle in particular was fantastic through seven strong results as he only gave up one run while he was out there. As it turned out, he was gutting his way through it as Walt Weiss dropped a bombshell during the postgame press conference and stated that Mahle was dealing with an injury right before the matchup and was considered a game-time decision.
“We had a scare before the game. He felt an abdominal pull. We didn’t know if he was going to make the start,” explained Weiss when he was asked about whether or not Tyler Mahle was truly done after the seventh inning. When he asked to explain more about Mahle’s pregame status, he explained that it really and truly was touch-and-go for Mahle heading into today’s game.
“We weren’t sure. It was right at game time after he came out of the bullpen,” explained Weiss. “He ended up working through it, and it got better as the game went on. But we were scrambling early on.” With that particular context, it makes Mahle’s start all the more impressive — especially considering that this was his first career Postseason start. A lot of credit has to be given to Mahle for going out there and toughing it out but now his status will be in question going forward, and hopefully he’ll be feeling better as the Postseason run (hopefully) progresses.
Meanwhile, this was another tough day for Didier Fuentes, who has now given up that big triple to J.T. Realmuto in Game 1 and the homer to Bohm in Game 2. It’s a very rough stat to Postseason life for Fuentes but Weiss has likely been using his own experiences as a player to keep Didier’s head high during this particular low moment.
“When you’re a late-inning reliever, these things happen,” explained Weiss. “I’ve seen some great ones that this has happened to. I saw one of the greatest. I was at shortstop when Kirk Gibson did his thing off [Dennis Eckersley,] one of the greatest closers of all time. It comes with the territory when you’re pitching late in close games. Every once in a while, they get you.“
Weiss also stood behind his decision to go to Dylan Lee, which made sense in the moment considering how Game 1 went. “Lee is our high-leverage lefty,” explained Weiss when he was asked about going with Lee in that situation. “[He] put down the same part of the order yesterday pretty easily. Threw the ball really well yesterday. So no, that’s his inning every time.”
Lastly, Dominic Smith got the call for a big at-bat at the end and Weiss had to field a question about that situation as well. Again, Weiss backed his player in that situation and stated that he had a “good feeling” about Dominic Smith potentially coming through with another big moment.
“Dom is a really good pinch-hitter and it’s a professional at-bat,” stated Weiss as he was asked about Smith coming in for the tenth inning. “I think thought there was a good chance he may even draw a walk there and pass the baton to Yaz. Just felt good about Dom in that situation. He’s come through for us.”
All in al, it’s a tough pill for the Braves to swallow (especially considering the missed opportunities that Atlanta had in the game, including a tough double play from Michael Harris II when Cristopher Sánchez was just barely holding on to a tied ballgame in the sixth inning) but at the same time, the Phillies had to take their medicine in Game 1.
It’s part of the dramatic ebb-and-flow that comes with the Postseason — especially considering that these two are divisional rivals who have been going back-and-forth with each other all season. There are no secrets left, no surprising the other. It’s just going to be a matter of who’s going to be the better team over the next nine (or so) innings.
Hopefully once the smoke clears tomorrow, the Braves will be the ones heading out to Los Angeles for the weekend but for now, it’s clear that the margin for error is just as razor thin as everybody thought it would be. The Braves threw their haymaker, the Phillies responded in kind and now it’s time to see who’s going to be able to deliver that knockout shot in Game 3. We’ll see what happens as the Braves play their first actual game in October this season — with everything on the line.