Series preview: vs. Nationals
When (TV): 7:35 p.m. Friday (FSSO), 7:10 p.m. Saturday (FSSO), 1:35 p.m. Sunday (FSSO)
Radio: 680, 93.7, 106.7
Probable starting pitchers:
Friday: Braves RH Julio Teheran (1-1, 2.77 ERA) vs. RH Tanner Roark (1-0, 3.00 ERA)
Saturday: Braves LH Alex Wood (1-1, 1.93) vs. RH Taylor Jordan (0-0, 1.42)
Sunday: Braves RH Aaron Harang (1-1, 0.71) vs. LH Gio Gonzalez (2-0, 0.75)
About the Braves:
Batting: Freddie Freeman singled in two runs with the bases loaded Wednesday night, making him 8-for-11 in those situations, dating to last season. Freeman was 5-for-10 with a double and two runs in last weekend's series against the Nationals. Jason Heyward snapped an 0-for-22 streak with a leadoff home run Wednesday on his way to a 3-for-4 night.
Pitching: Teheran allowed two earned runs in each of his first two starts, going six innings in a 2-0 loss opening day in Milwaukee and seven innings in a 6-2 win Saturday against the Nationals. Teheran is 3-1 with a 2.92 ERA in six career starts against the Nationals. The Braves limited the Nationals to a .187 batting average and only five runs in last weekend's three-game series in Washington.
Miscellaneous: The Braves have won 18 of their past 25 games against the Nationals, dating to a series Sept 14-16, 2012. The Braves have won six of the eight series since then, losing one and splitting the other. In that time Braves pitchers have a 2.06 ERA, and their batters have hit 24 home runs in 25 games.
About the Nationals:
Batting: Anthony Rendon hit safely in each of the Nationals' first eight games, when he was 13-for-31 (.419) with three doubles, a triple, a home run and eight RBIs. The Marlins walked Rendon to bring up Jayson Werth with the bases loaded in the eighth inning Wednesday night, and Werth hit his fourth career grand slam, the majors' first go-ahead grand slam in the eighth inning or later since Melvin Mora in 2010.
Pitching: Roark allowed two runs in six innings to win his only start this season, 8-2 against the Mets on April 3. Roark appeared in 14 games for the Nationals as a rookie last season. In five starts he was 3-1 with a 1.74 ERA. One of those starts came against the Braves on Sept. 17, when he pitched seven shutout innings, allowing two hits, in a 4-0 win. Jordan, the Nationals' fifth starter, won their only game in last weekend's series against the Braves, allowing only one earned run in 6 1/3 innings.
Miscellaneous: Entering play Thursday, the Nationals were off to a 6-2 start on the season, and the only two losses came last weekend to the Braves. Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman returned to the lineup Wednesday after taking three days to work on a sidearm throwing delivery to help his sore shoulder. Zimmerman hadn't played since a throwing error against the Braves led to two unearned runs.
