'We're never out of it': Albies' walk-off HR highlights club's special skill

ATLANTA -- Since Ozzie Albies made his MLB debut with the Braves in 2017, he has been part of six NL East-winning Atlanta squads, including the team that won the 2021 World Series.

After Albies hit a walk-off two-run home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth to help the Braves to a series-clinching 4-3 win over the Brewers on Saturday afternoon at Truist Park, the second baseman said this year’s Braves squad is one of his favorites.

“This team is really special,” Albies said. “I’ve been on this team for a long time, and it’s a really special group each and every year. This one is definitely one of the top two that I’ve been on. [It’s a] great group of guys. Our staff [does] everything in their power, every single game to go out there and expect to win every day. I’m really honored to be on this team.”

Manager Walt Weiss said Albies’ statement about the current group was high praise from a player who has spent his career with Atlanta after he was signed as an international free agent by the Braves in July 2013.

“That’s coming from a pretty good source right there,” Weiss said. “He’s been here through it all. This is my ninth year [with the Braves] and Ozzie has been here longer than that. He’s seen it all. That’s a strong statement. We’ve had some really strong teams here and I would tend to agree with him from where I sit.”

A series win against the NL Central-leading Brewers is quite the return to form for a Braves squad that started the season with an MLB-best 45-21 record before Atlanta dropped six of seven games leading into this weekend’s series.

“That’s another good team win,” Weiss said. “It seems like it’s somebody new [being the hero] virtually every day. It’s a good series to win.”

The walk-off home run was Albies’ second long ball of the game. Albies scored the game’s first run when he hit a solo homer off Brewers starting pitcher Kyle Harrison in the bottom of the fifth.

The Brewers responded with three runs in the sixth and seventh before Albies drove in himself and Matt Olson with an opposite-field home run that travelled a Statcast-projected 339 feet (with an xBA of 0.90) and barely cleared the right-field wall.

“I was just debating if it was going foul or staying fair,” Albies said. “I started [saying] ‘Please stay fair.’ Thank God it did.”

The Braves were 2-25 when trailing after eight innings this season. With their second baseman’s heroics, they’re now 3-25.

“We’re a team that doesn’t quit until 27 outs are made,” Albies said. “Even then, we don’t quit. We just go talk about it [and say], ‘Tomorrow is a new day.’ And [we] figure out what we can do to win games.”

It was Albies’ fourth career walk-off home run and his first since June 8, 2023. Albies is the first Braves player with multiple home runs in a game including a walk-off homer since Justin Upton on April 6, 2013.

Both of Albies’ opposite-field home runs on Saturday were hit from the switch-hitter’s right side. Albies hit the walk-off against a 98.1 mph sinker thrown by Milwaukee reliever Aaron Ashby.

“I was looking for a fastball,” Albies said. “He threw me one on the first pitch and I fouled it off. Then he went [with a] changeup. I got to two strikes and I was like, ‘Be ready.’ And I guess he threw it where my [swing] was.”

After Albies hit 33 home runs in 2023, he dealt with injuries in the past couple of seasons, tallying 10 homers in 2024 and 16 in 2025. But the 29-year-old already has 12 home runs this season.

“He’s been a great player here for a long time and he’s dealt with some injuries,” Weiss said. “Guys who have dealt with injuries and miss a lot of time, it’s difficult. He’s been battling that the last couple of years and he’s healthy now.”

Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale was in line for the loss after he allowed two unearned runs on five hits with seven strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. Albies, who committed an error in the top of the sixth which led to two Brewers runs, helped Sale avoid his sixth loss of the season.

“The one thing I’ll say about Ozzie is he’s always been the same guy, whether he’s injured or in a slump or he’s the best player on the field,” Sale said. “He’s always been the same guy. It becomes really easy to root for him and to stay in his corner. What a fun night. Two homers, a walk-off win … we’re never out of it.”