ATLANTA -- It's a moment Michael Harris II likely envisioned countless times as a kid: stepping to the plate in a big spot in a winner-take-all postseason game for his hometown club.
Well, Harris -- born and raised in the Atlanta area before being selected by the Braves in the third round of the 2019 Draft -- made the most of the opportunity early in Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series against the Phillies on Thursday night.
He staked the Braves to a 3-0 first-inning lead with a three-run homer just over the right-field wall at Truist Park. Even with veteran righty Aaron Nola struggling to find the zone, Harris had no problem going down and golfing a 2-0 sinker that was well below the zone.
Nola had just walked Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson on five pitches apiece. He then started Harris with back-to-back pitches out of the zone, prompting a visit from catcher J.T. Realmuto.
But even with the next offering missing badly, that didn't deter Harris from pouncing. He turned on the sinker and roped a 100.5 mph line drive that right fielder Bryce Harper tracked to the wall before looking up and watching it narrowly clear the brick wall in right-center field.
"He got behind in the count, 2-0, took a mound visit, I know they were trying to get a strike there," Harris said on the NBC broadcast. "Ball was a little low, but I was just trying to hit it out. I did it."
A little low? Try just 1.11 feet off the ground.
It was the lowest pitch Harris has hit for any of his 101 career homers (including the postseason). It was also the third-lowest pitch hit for a postseason homer by any player since tracking began in 2008.
It's been a resurgent year for Harris, who slashed .294/.321/.491 with a career-high 26 home runs. His .812 OPS came on the heels of posting a career-low .677 OPS in 2025.
Harris, of course, played a pivotal role in Atlanta's Game 1 victory, going 3-for-3 with a pair of runs and a sacrifice bunt. His two-out infield single in the eighth inning kicked off the decisive rally capped by Austin Riley's game-winning three-run homer.