This series became an intriguing one for the sole fact that the Braves made a very interesting signing on September 1. The Rays put SS Ha-Seong Kim on the waiver wire and sure enough, the Braves were the one who decided to pay hm $2 million for one month and hopefully $16 million for 2026 should he decide to exercise his player option for next season.
As such, the Braves received a small shot in the arm with the arrival of Kim as their new starting shortstop. While there’s still a big question as to whether
or not he’ll be staying for next season (and assuming he doesn’t have the September of a lifetime, I’d say that it’s likely that he’ll stay), it’s still fun to see a new face arrive onto the scene this late into the season. How did it end up going for the Braves in Chicago? Well, I suppose you’ll just have to keep reading this, then, right? Let’s talk about it.
Monday, September 1
Cubs 7, Braves 6
This one started swimmingly for Spencer Strider and the Braves, as a first-inning RBI single from Ozzie Albies, a two-RBI single from Michael Harris II in the third inning and then a follow-up two-RBI double in the top of the fifth from Money Mike pushed the Braves out to a 6-2 lead after five innings. Things were going pretty well for Atlanta and Strider through five innings.
However, after Strider gave up a single to Ian Happ on his 88th pitch of the game which led off the sixth inning for the Cubs, the bullpen got involved and it didn’t go well for the Braves. Hunter Stratton came in and gave up a two-run double to old friend Dansby Swanson and just like that, the four-run lead was cut down to two as we entered into the money innings.
Dylan Lee pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning but Pierce Johnson wouldn’t be nearly as successful in the eighth inning. Once again, Ian Happ hit a leadoff single and once again, it led to trouble for the Braves as Carson Kelly bopped one over the ivy in order to tie the game at six runs apiece. Atlanta then had two chances to push across a runner in scoring position — Michael Harris II struck out in the top of the ninth with pinch-runner Luke Williams on second base and then the Braves failed to cash in their Manfred Man in the top of the 10th. That’s a recipe for disaster, as Carson Kelly capped off Atlanta’s latest collapse with a walk-off RBI single with two outs in the 10th.
Tuesday, September 2
Cubs 4, Braves 3
Joey Wentz didn’t have the best night in this one, as he only lasted four innings and the third inning in particular ended up being the consequential one in this. Wentz gave up four runs on the night and they all came in the third inning. Kyle Tucker picked a bad time to hit his first home run since August 23 and to make matters worse, it was a three-run dinger that put the Cubs in control. Later on in that frame, Justin Turner hit a single with two outs on the board and then Ian Happ hit one off of the glove of Ha-Seong Kim (who was making his Atlanta debut in this one) in order to bring in the fourth run of the inning for Chicago.
As such, it was time for the Braves to start digging themselves out of this hole against Shota Imanaga and for a couple of innings, the Braves seemed up for the challenge. Matt Olson led off the fourth with a triple and then made it home on a wild pitch to get Atlanta on the board and then Ozzie Albies proceeded to make it an extremely productive at-bat as he cracked one out to make it a 4-2 game.
Eli White led off the fifth inning with a home run and just like that, the Braves were within one run after having been down four only a couple of innings ago.
Atlanta didn’t pose a serious threat at the plate until the ninth inning rolled around, which is when pinch-runner Luke Williams made it to third after Ha-Seong Kim’s second hit as a member of the Braves enabled him to make it there. With the tying run 90 feet away, Eli White popped out harmlessly on a 100-mph pitch from Daniel Palencia to doom the Braves to their 33rd one-run loss of the season. For reference’s sake, Atlanta is currently “leading” the White Sox by three games in that category. Oof.
Wednesday, September 3
Braves 5, Cubs 1
Let’s just cut to the chase here: It finally happened, folks. For the first time in the 2025 season, the starting shortstop for the Atlanta Braves hit a home run. Orlando Arcia couldn’t do it in the 32 plate appearances he made for Atlanta this season. 405 plate appearances weren’t enough for Nick Allen. It took a grand total of seven (7) for Ha-Seong Kim to do it. His three-run bomb in the top of the seventh flipped the game on its head and put the Braves out in front after having gone most of the game without even getting a hit — much less scoring a run. Welcome to the Braves, Ha-Seong Kim!
Fortunately while that was going on, the Braves got the good version of Bryce Elder, as he ended up going seven innings while only giving up four hits and one unearned run without walking anybody. He also struck out six batters on his way to getting through those seven innings, which we here in Braves country will gladly take from the enigmatic hurler.
The one run that the Cubs scored in the second inning off of an RBI single from Willi Castro ended up being the extent of Chicago’s offense on this night. Meanwhile, Nacho Alvarez Jr. added on a run shortly after Kim’s go-ahead homer in the seventh and then Ozzie Albies hit his second homer of the series in the eighth inning in order to bring us to the eventual final score of 5-1.
Raisel Iglesias didn’t get a save in his ninth-inning appearance in this one but Chicago did make him sweat by getting two men on with the tying run potentially sitting on deck. Fortunately, the reigning NL Reliever of the Month got the job done and Atlanta was able to avoid a sweep.
I’d say this was a fair result over the course of the three games. Atlanta continued to be the best team in the world at losing one-run games and then they were eventually rewarded for their perseverance by picking up a win that ensured that they wouldn’t leave Wrigleyville empty-handed. As usual, it’s frustratingly encouraging to see the Braves keeping it close with these teams that are on-course for the Postseason. Five of the six losses that the Braves suffered on this road trip were of the one-run variety, with four of those five one-run losses coming to the Phillies and Cubs. It’s hard to not wonder what this season would look like had the Braves been a lot better on one-run games than they have been this season but for now, all they can do is play with the cards they’ve been dealt and the Braves were certainly dealt a bad hand in that regard.
For now, they’ll end this series on a winning note before gearing up to face them again next week in Cobb County. Before that happens, the Braves will have to deal with another Postseason hopeful in the form of the Seattle Mariners this weekend. They’ll finally be back a home and that might make a difference in this series — the Braves are a .500 team at home (which isn’t great) but the Mariners are 32-40 on the road, which ain’t exactly spectacular, either. We’ll see if that does, in fact, make a difference this weekend. For now, the Braves are mercifully heading home after a tough road trip that has seem them remain in fourth place — both in the division and in the MLB Draft Lottery standings.
