Good morning, it's June 1, and the Braves have their best record on this date since 2013 and their second-best since 2003.
Thursday night's 4-2 win over the Nationals at SunTrust Park gave the Braves a 33-23 record (.589 winning percentage) through May. They were 32-22 (.593) on this date in 2013 and 37-18 (.673) in 2003.
You won’t be surprised to read that this is the first time the Braves enter June with a winning record since 2014, when they were 30-25 on this date. They were 25-25 at the start of June in 2015, 15-36 in 2016 and 22-29 in 2017.
Despite going 8-8 in their final 16 games of May, the Braves start this month in first place in the NL East, having reclaimed a half-game lead over the Nationals.
Before today, the Braves last started June in first place in 2014, when they were 30-25 and led the division by two games on this date. They were already double-digits out of first place at this point each of the past two seasons, 10-1/2 games back in 2017 and 16 games back in 2016.
It’s a long way from June 1 to October, of course, but so far so good.
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TODAY’S LEADOFF LINKS
> For the first time in a decade, the University of Georgia baseball team will host an NCAA regional, starting tonight at Foley Field in Athens. See Chris Starrs' story here.
> How will Atlanta United be affected by Wednesday night's disappointing 1-1 draw at New England? See Doug Roberson's story here.
> Here's the first in Michael Cunningham's series of conversations with Hawks assistant GM Jeff Peterson about eight top prospects in the NBA draft.
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