Series preview: at Los Angeles Dodgers
When (TV): 10:10 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday (SPSO)
Radio: 680, 93.7, 106.7
Probable starting pitchers
Tuesday: Braves RH Aaron Harang (9-6, 3.31) vs. RH Josh Beckett (6-5, 2.52)
Wednesday: Braves LH Alex Wood (7-8, 3.44 ERA) vs. RH Zack Greinke (12-5, 2.74 ERA)
Thursday: Braves RH Julio Teheran (10-6, 2.71) vs. LH Clayton Kershaw (12-2, 1.76)
About the Braves
Batting: Evan Gattis has back-to-back multi-hit games, going 5-for-6 with a double and a home run in the final two games of the San Diego Padres series. This is after he had one hit (a single) in his first 15 plate appearances coming off the disabled list. The Braves outscored the Padres 15-6 in the final three games of the series. The pitching gets tough on this trip, though. Braves batters face three Dodgers starters ranked in the top 10 in the NL in ERA, including Kershaw's 1.76 which leads the majors. Kershaw has pitched three complete games in his past seven starts, including two shutouts and his no-hitter against the Rockies on June 18.
Pitching: Harang went 10-10 with a 3.61 ERA in 31 starts during his one-year stay with the Dodgers in 2012 at age 34. He's one win shy of double-digits with two months to go at age 36 this season for the Braves. He should have reached 10 wins already but has been a hard-luck loser in each of his past two starts, allowing only two earned runs in 13 innings but taking no decisions in 3-2 and 2-1 losses. Teheran will be looking for redemption for the Game 3 division series start he made his last trip to Dodger Stadium, when he struggled to grip the ball in dry conditions and gave up six runs in 2 2/3 innings of 13-6 loss in Game 3.
Miscellaneous: The Braves open a three-city, eight-game west coast swing to L.A., San Diego and Seattle with their first trip back to Dodger Stadium since last year's division series. The Braves actually went 5-2 with a 1.88 ERA in the regular season last year against the Dodgers, before dropping three of four in the division series.
About the Dodgers
Batting: Matt Kemp is 11-for-27 (.407) with a double, a triple and five RBIs in his past seven games, including a two-hit game Sunday to give him four multi-hit games in that span. Adrian Gonzalez has hit safely in seven of nine games since the All-Star break, while going 13-for-35 (.371) with four doubles, a home run and eight RBIs. Gonzalez is 7-for-17 with three home runs and five RBIs in his career off Harang. Hanley Ramirez has five home runs in 26 at-bats off Harang.
Pitching: Beckett has given up nine runs in his past 13 2/3 innings over three starts while battling a sore hip. Before that he'd made seven consecutive starts allowing two or fewer earned runs and pitched at least six innings in six of them. The Braves face Kershaw for the first time since seeing him twice in last year's Division Series. The Braves managed only one earned run (three unearned) in 13 innings against him in Games 1 and 4, drawing four walks and striking out 18 times.
Miscellaneous: The Dodgers have won five of their past seven games, including a weekend sweep against the Giants when they allowed only four runs in three games and it put L.A. back in first place in the NL West.
— Carroll Rogers
