Braves at Cubs
It hasn’t been smooth at times, but the Atlanta Braves' bullpen continues pitching just well enough to help the team extend its National League East lead entering the opener of a four-game series Monday at the Chicago Cubs. The Braves pushed their division lead over Philadelphia to 6 1/2 games with Sunday’s 4-3, 10-inning victory at Washington - in which Atlanta’s bullpen covered eight innings as Josh Tomlin pitched four scoreless frames and Luke Jackson earned the save.
The Braves bullpen is 9-1 with seven saves and a 2.31 ERA this month, helping Atlanta improve to 16-5 in June and move 14 games above .500 as Johan Camargo delivered a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the top of the 10th to push the Nationals 8 1/2 games behind. The Cubs split a four-game weekend series at home with the New York Mets, rallying Sunday for a 5-3 victory that keeps Chicago one-half game ahead of Milwaukee in the NL Central. Shortstop Javier Baez belted a three-run homer in the eighth inning - the 100th blast of his career - finishing with two hits and one run scored as the Cubs improved to 27-14 at home - the second-best home mark in the NL. Chicago third baseman Kris Bryant is hitting .389 during his 10-game hitting streak, and in his past 46 games is batting .320 with 11 doubles, 13 homers and 25 RBIs.
TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, FS Southeast (Atlanta), NBCS Chicago
PITCHING MATCHUP: Braves RH Julio Teheran (5-5, 3.40 ERA) vs. Cubs LH Jon Lester (6-5, 4.13)
Teheran endured his worst start of the season in a home loss Tuesday against the Mets, allowing six runs on eight hits (including one homer) with three walks over four innings, after an eight-start stretch in which he posted a 0.81 ERA with no homers allowed across 44 2/3 innings. The 28-year-old pitched six innings in each of his previous two starts before facing New York, combining to allow one earned run on five hits in victories against Miami and Pittsburgh. Teheran held the Cubs to one run on six hits with seven strikeouts in a no-decision April 3 in Atlanta.
Lester rebounded from a rough start to beat the White Sox on Wednesday, striking out six while allowing three runs on seven hits with one walk in 5 2/3 innings of a 7-3 victory. The 35-year-old started the season by pitching to a 1.16 ERA through seven starts, but has surrendered 11 homers while posting a 7.17 ERA and an opponents batting average of .325 in his last seven outings. Lester gave up two runs on six hits over six innings at Atlanta on April 4, and lifetime is 6-2 with a 2.52 ERA in 10 career starts against the Braves.
WALK-OFFS
1. Chicago RF Jason Heyward closed the Mets series with back-to-back three-hit games and is 9-for-21 in his past six contests.
2. Atlanta 3B Josh Donaldson homered in the fourth inning, his seventh longball in the past 12 games helping raise his average to .373 in that span.
3. Sunday’s victory improved the Braves record in extra innings to 7-3 this season, and Atlanta begins the week 22-15 on the road.