Braves head to Chicago with sights set on clinching

The Braves are on the verge of returning to the postseason.

A playoff berth could be clinched as early as Tuesday, and a division title could come as early as Friday, if the Braves take care of their business in Chicago and Houston and have some other results around the National League go their way.

Their magic number to win the NL East for the first time since 2023 remains at seven after Sunday’s 9-4 loss to the Phillies, and their magic number to clinch a playoff berth is four (and could drop depending on the results of the Diamondbacks and Padres games later Sunday).

Sunday’s defeat for the Braves, in which left-handed reliever Dylan Lee and right-handed reliever Víctor Mederos combined to allow seven runs in the eighth inning of a 2-2 game, didn’t put too much of a damper on the weekend for the Braves (88-62), who sit on the cusp of a return to the playoffs after missing the postseason in 2025.

“It’s awesome. Most of the faces in there are pretty much the same,” said Braves’ starting pitcher Grant Holmes, who allowed two runs in four-plus innings Sunday. “It’s awesome seeing the turnaround we’ve had. Last year was kind of like a fluke. Winning like we have this year has been pretty special, and looking forward to what it holds.”

Holmes and his teammates may have to do their celebrating in a visiting clubhouse this week if the stars align. Whether that celebration comes at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Tuesday or Wednesday, or at Daikin Park in Houston on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, is of little concern for a squad that has led the division nearly wire-to-wire and would love to finally put an end to the pennant race.

The Braves took over the division lead April 8 and have never looked back, leading the standings by as many as 10 1/2 games. The rival Phillies got within 2 games on July 18, and within 3 games as recently as Wednesday, but have never quite been able to get over the hump.

Manager Walt Weiss’ club has never completely faltered, either. They then delivered a knockout blow of sorts this weekend by beating the Phillies 6-5 in 11 innings Friday and routing them 12-2 on Saturday.

They did that on the heels of a three-game losing streak.

“I’m really proud of our guys, the way we’ve responded,” Weiss said. “I’ve talked about it this year when we’ve had some tough stretches, and then we’ve responded well. Tough game, and we responded well. Going into Philly last weekend, a four-game series, I think we had a four-game lead at the start of that series, and winning that first night — you would’ve liked to win three of ‘em there, but to get the split there, I was proud of the way we played.

“And then this series another big one, and they respond the way they have. That’s what you want because everyone’s going to get beat up in this league. I don’t care who you are, you want to have a team that’s resilient and can turn the page and show up the next day like it never happened. I think we’ve shown that a lot this year.”

Having a postseason berth, and possible division title, locked up this week would put the Braves in a curious position.

Going into Monday, the penultimate week of the regular season, the Braves are slotted into the NL playoffs as the No. 3 seed, meaning they would open postseason play Sept. 29 at Truist Park. But there is still hope to climb into the No. 2 position, as the Braves sit 2 1/2 games back of the NL West-leading Dodgers (90-59). Leapfrogging the Dodgers in the division would result in a week off before hosting the first game of National League Division Series on Oct. 3.