Nationals at Braves
Trea Turner struggled offensively in his first 11 games since returning from a broken finger, but as usual the Washington Nationals shortstop wears out the Atlanta Braves, a trend he hopes to continue entering Wednesday’s finale of a two-game road series. Turner, who hit .204 with a .536 OPS since rejoining the lineup May 17, went 3-for-4 with a walk in Tuesday’s 5-4 victory - raising his average in 51 career games against the Braves to .348 with 11 homers and 29 RBIs.
Washington - one of baseball’s biggest disappointments through the first two months of the season - has won four times in its past five games thanks in part to left fielder Juan Soto, who extended his hitting streak to 12 games Tuesday and is batting .444 with nine runs scored and 11 RBIs in that span. Atlanta lost for just the fifth time in its past 17 games after an uncharacteristically shaky night from one of their starters as Max Fried gave up four runs on nine hits for the Braves, who began Tuesday sporting a 2.80 starters ERA in May. Atlanta shortstop Dansby Swanson’s extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a two-out, ninth-inning single. Tuesday’s loss dropped the Braves to 14-13 at home this season, compared to a 16-12 mark on the road.
TV: 7:20 p.m. ET, MASN (Washington), FS Southeast (Atlanta)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Nationals RH Anibal Sanchez (0-6, 5.10 ERA) vs. Braves RH Kevin Gausman (2-3, 4.33)
Sanchez will be activated from the injured list after missing two starts with a left hamstring injury. The 35-year-old struggled in his first nine starts after signing a two-year deal in the offseason, giving up three earned runs or more six times, including three runs on six hits over 4 1/3 innings in a May 10 loss at the Los Angeles Dodgers before getting hurt in the second inning on May 16 against the New York Mets. Sanchez was a pleasant surprise last season after signing with Atlanta during spring training, going 7-6 with a 2.83 ERA and 1.08 WHIP.
Gausman has won just once in five May starts despite pitching well, allowing no more than three earned runs in any outing while holding opponents to a .224 batting average and 15 hits in 18 innings across his past three games. The 28-year-old gave up three runs on four hits with six strikeouts over six innings Thursday at San Francisco, five days after limiting Milwaukee to two runs on six hits in six innings. Gausman, who has posted a 0.98 WHIP and 3.82 ERA in five home starts, went 1-0 with a 3.86 ERA in two games against Washington last season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Atlanta 1B Freddie Freeman is two doubles shy of becoming the sixth player in franchise history to record at least 300 doubles and 200 homers.
2. Nationals INF Howie Kendrick finished with three hits for the second time in three games, and is 7-for-11 with four runs scored and four RBIs in that stretch.
3. Braves LF Austin Riley finished 3-for-4 with his sixth homer of the season Tuesday, and in 13 career games the rookie is hitting .365 with 16 RBIs.