Braves' Austin Riley: Launches game-deciding homer
Rotowire
Riley went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run during Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series against the Phillies on Tuesday.
The veteran third baseman came to the plate in the eighth inning with Atlanta trailing 3-2, and he delivered a three-run homer to right-center field off Philadelphia closer Jhoan Duran to flip the script. Riley closed the regular season by going 0-for-11 with six strikeouts in his last three games, dropping his OPS for the campaign to a career-worst .654 in 159 contests. Already the Game 1 hero, Riley could effectively erase all his 2026 struggles if he continues to perform in the playoffs.
Riley is out of the lineup for Sunday's matchup with the Astros.
Riley will ride the pine after striking out eight times over his last four games. Mauricio Dubon will man the hot corner and bat fifth for Atlanta during Sunday's series finale against Houston.
Riley went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Friday's 6-5 extra-innings win over the Phillies.
Riley launched his seventh career home run off Aaron Nola in the seventh inning. The 29-year-old is hitting .235 over 10 September games, though he's homered twice with seven RBI in that span. For the year, he's slashing .223/.294/.369 with 17 long balls, 68 RBI, 59 runs scored and nine steals across 578 plate appearances.
Riley is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rockies.
Riley will take a rare day off as Atlanta kicks off its series with the Rockies. Mauricio Dubon moves over to third base and bats sixth.
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Braves' Austin Riley: Picks up steal in win
Rotowire
Riley went 2-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Sunday's 4-2 win over Milwaukee in the Little League Classic.
Riley continues to labor near the bottom of the order -- he hasn't hit higher than seventh in the lineup since he batted sixth July 24 in Baltimore. The third baseman has gone 20-for-72 (.278) in August, far better than his .223 average for the season. He's added a .662 OPS, 15 home runs, 60 RBI, 54 runs scored, 20 doubles, one triple and eight stolen bases over 130 contests. His counting stats are nearly identical to a 102-game sample from the 2025 regular season, highlighting his clear and sudden decline in productivity this year.
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