After a truly terrible first half, Atlanta Braves fans were understandably concerning that Michael Harris II had regressed to the point where his $72 million extension that runs through at least 2030 may have been a mistake. Luckily, after a bit of a breather at the All-Star break and reverting changes to his batting stance, Harris looked renewed starting in the middle of July.
The good times didn't end in July as Harris went on to seemingly complete his turnaround with an .885 OPS including 14 extra base hits in August. It took forever, but Harris was finally silencing his doubters and there was hope again that he could realize his lofty potential as an impact bat with speed that also provided Gold Glove caliber defense in center field.
Harris' outfield defense remains on track to be extremely good once again, but the start of his September is a reminder that nothing should be taken for granted when it comes to him consistently producing at the plate.
Michael Harris II's torrid August looks like mirage after horrid start to September
In Harris' first game in September, it looked like he was carrying over his performance from last month as he had a multi-hit game and drove in four runs. However, what is wild is that he has a total of three hits in September including that two-hit game against the Cubs. Once you look at his overall line this month of .077/.073/.103, fans are going to start longing for the days when he was hitting .200 again.
Harris' numbers lately are certainly ugly, but it is fair to mention that this is still a small sample at the end of a lost season. He is striking out less than 25% of the time and while his refusal to draw walks remains frustrating, this current cold stretch does feel a bit like he is just having some rough batted ball luck combined with an understandable malaise from having to play a bunch of meaningless games to close out 2025.
At least, Braves fans have to hope that is what is going on. Reverting his batting stance did have an immediate positive impact, but it also could make him more susceptible to velocity if Harris' timing isn't just right. Harris' extension was starting to look like a bargain again, but his aggressive approach and inability to get on base outside of contact is biting him this September and raises real questions about his long-term viability.