The Braves somehow escaped May with a winning record (13-12) after defeating the Nationals on Monday. They enter Tuesday at 25-26 with three games remaining against the Nationals, whom they’ve defeated six times in seven tries. The rest of the June schedule, however, presents challenges.
The world champion Dodgers, who broke the Braves’ hearts in the National League Championship Series in October, come to Atlanta for a three-game series this weekend. The Braves will then embark on an important six-game road trip against division rivals Philadelphia and Miami. The following homestand features the Red Sox and Cardinals, two teams battling for postseason spots. Afterward, the Braves travel again with a four-game series (including a doubleheader) at the Mets and another four-game series in Cincinnati. They end the month by hosting the Mets.
It’s a month that very well could determine the rest of the season for the Braves, who despite their struggles remain in the NL East hunt.
“We have a tough June coming up,” starter Charlie Morton said. “There are some tough teams we’re going to play. I’m not going to say it’s going to make or break it, but it’s going to be, going into July and looking back on how we did in June, I think that’s going to be — I think this stretch coming up is the one that’s either going to give us some momentum to finish that second half well or it’s going to be pretty tough. We’re playing some good teams.”
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