Michael Harris II Is Doing That Second Half Thing Again

Death. Taxes. Second-half Michael Harris II.

It’s no secret that the Atlanta Braves have had an extremely disappointing season, but no player mirrored that frustration in the first-half quite like Harris II.

When the All-Star break hit, Harris II was slashing .210/.234/.317 with a .551 OPS and a 47 wRC+, all career lows. His at-bats became the opposite of must-watch television.

Back in June, I asked just how long Michael Harris II gets the benefit of the doubt. I ended that piece urging Braves fans not to give up. The tools, the makeup, the track record. The path back to success was still there.

And now, that success has arrived.

Stance Change

The most visible change for Harris II has been a subtle tweak to his batting stance.

When he broke into the big leagues in 2022, Harris posted an .853 OPS and a 137 wRC+, beating out teammate Spencer Strider for NL Rookie of the Year.

Under then-hitting coach Kevin Seitzer, Harris lowered his hands to improve timing and contact quality. We’ve seen Seitzer make similar changes with Ronald Acuña Jr. and Jarred Kelenic, among others.

At times, it worked. This change helped Harris II win that Rookie of the Year title and show flashes of success in 2023 and 2024. But in 2025, the results began to crater.

In raising his hands again, it has given him a better starting point to attack the ball. With lower hands, his bat tended to drag behind his body, producing weaker, inconsistent contact.

With lower hands, the bat would drag behind his body, leading to weaker and less consistent contact. In bringing his hands higher, it gives him a better starting point to attack the ball. It has brought back the more natural, comfortable feel at the plate, as Harris II admitted he had used his entire life.

Since the change, the improvement has been obvious.

His ground-ball rate has dropped from 52.9% to 33.8%, while his line-drive rate has jumped from 15.7% to 31.2%. With the athleticism and power Michael Harris II has displayed in the past, there’s no reason to hit the ball on the ground as often as he had been.

He’s also cut his strikeout rate from 20.9% to 14.7%. Harris II will likely always be a freer swinger than some fans prefer, as his 1st-percentile walk rate (2.8%) and 2nd-percentile chase rate (42.8%) suggests. But if he’s making more consistent quality contact, a little chase is a trade-off the Braves can live with.

Second Half Savant?

There’s a quote from author Riley Sager that has always stuck with me.

“One time is an anomaly. Two times is a coincidence. There times is proof.” – Riley Sager, Lock Every Door

Patterns matter. If a player struggles in the first half but turns it on in the second half once, that’s baseball. Twice? Maybe something’s there, maybe not. But three years in a row? Now we’re starting to define a trend.

Since his rookie season, Harris has followed the same script each year – a sluggish first half followed by an explosive second half. In 2025, however, the difference between the two has been even more extreme.

Once again, after the All-Star break, something clicked. In just 23 games, Harris has seen his batting average rise from .210 to .241, his OPS from .551 to .658, and his wRC+ from 47 to 77.

This follows the above trend to a tee. The frustrating part? If he’d found this groove even a month earlier, the Braves might still be in the playoff race.

Still, the consistency of his late-season surges is impressive. The next step in Harris II’s progression is figuring out how to avoid those prolonged first-half slumps. If he ever puts together a full season, the All-Star breakout everyone’s been waiting for could finally be here.

Continue To Believe

Michael Harris II is still young in his MLB career. He is only 24-years old and the Atlanta Braves still have seven years of control remaining on his contract.

His defense remains elite in center field, with +5 Outs Above Average (91st-percentile).

Yes, watching him hit can be frustrating at times. But the upside is still massive. Players can always improve and get better, and there is nobody that wants to do so more than Michael Harris II himself.

The first-half struggles are real, and both he and the coaching staff know it. Hitting coach Tim Hyers and manager Brian Snitker have both pointed to his untapped potential. Maybe sticking with the higher hand position is the answer. Maybe winter ball could help him work through his early-season issues. Or maybe he’s a young ballplayer who is still growing in the league.

Whatever the solution ends up being, one thing is clear: Fans shouldn’t give up on Michael Harris II as the center fielder of the future for the Atlanta Braves.