The Atlanta Braves enter the final weekend of the 2026 regular season with the National League East title already in hand and a postseason berth secured.
Atlanta sits at 93-65 and is projected as the No. 3 seed in the National League. That placement means a best-of-three Wild Card series at Truist Park beginning Sept. 29 rather than a first-round bye.
The identity of the opponent remains unsettled. The identity of the Game 1 starter is not.
Veteran left-hander Chris Sale is lined up to open the series. The 37-year-old is in his third season with the Braves and has been the most consistent member of the rotation.
On Thursday, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Sale was named the 2026 Brave of the Year by the Atlanta chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
Sale finished the regular season 14-9 with a 2.16 ERA across 27 starts. He logged 162 2/3 innings, struck out 200 batters and walked only 31. His WHIP was 0.98.Those numbers came after a 2025 campaign shortened by a rib-cage injury.
Atlanta managed his workload carefully all year, giving him extra rest between outings so he would make 27 starts instead of a more typical 30 to 32. The approach paid off. Sale stayed healthy for the full season and remained effective into late September.
His final regular season appearance came Wednesday against the Cincinnati Reds. Sale worked 5 2/3 innings, allowed one run on four hits, walked none and struck out 10. The 10th strikeout gave him his ninth career 200-strikeout season.
He becomes only the second left-hander, after Hall of Famer Randy Johnson, to reach that mark nine or more times. Sale also moved into 26th place on the all-time strikeout list with 2,779.
The outing left him with five days of rest before the postseason begins. Manager Walt Weiss has said throughout the year that the extra days between starts were designed to position Sale for October.
A healthy, high-strikeout left-hander at the front of a short series gives Atlanta a clear edge, particularly against a club whose rotation does not match Sale’s recent form.
The Braves close the regular season against the Miami Marlins this weekend. Sale will not pitch again until the Wild Card opener.
Atlanta’s rotation depth behind him remains a question after injuries earlier in the year, which only increases the value of a fully available ace in the first round.
Sale last appeared in the postseason in 2021 with the Boston Red Sox. This will be his first October start in a Braves uniform.
