Atlanta @ Washington preview

Last Meeting ( May 5, 2010 ) Atlanta 7, Washington 6

Atlanta’s Nate McLouth needed a month to get his first hit with a runner in scoring position. The Braves hope it won’t take as long for him to do it again.

McLouth’s RBI double in Wednesday’s victory over Washington ended his 0-for-13 skid with runners in scoring position this year. The Braves would like to see more of the same in Thursday’s series finale with the Nationals – and many more times this season.

McLouth is the leadoff hitter for Atlanta and the Braves need him to start coming through in clutch situations and hitting better overall. He’s got an unusual combination of power and speed that can give the Atlanta lineup help in several different ways.

The Braves got him from Pittsburgh last year to give their lineup some punch at the top spot. He hit 46 homers in the past two seasons and knew how to get on base. But that hasn’t happened this season as McLouth is hitting just .181 heading into Thursday’s game.

McLouth has only two homers and four RBIs through the first 24 games and that’s not what the Braves want. His problems from the leadoff spot are affecting a lineup that’s hitting just .240 so far this season.

Washington has had similar troubles this season from clean-up hitter Adam Dunn. The only difference is the big first baseman’s bat is starting to awaken from its season-long slumber.

Dunn is different from many power hitters in that he’s got patience and can draw walks. He walked three times in Wednesday’s loss despite going 0-for-3. Dunn is now hitting .231 with five homers and 11 RBIs – having moved his average up almost 70 points in just over two weeks.

The Nationals desperately needed Dunn to get hot quickly because they were missing their other big power bat. Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman hits in front of Dunn and missed two stretches of games with hamstring problems.

Manager Jim Riggleman was forced to put non-power hitters like Cristian Guzman and Willie Harris in the No. 3 slot and the Nationals could have been in big trouble if Dunn didn’t finally get going. His four homers and nine RBIs in the last two weeks couldn’t have come at a better time.

The Braves will send Tim Hudson to the mound in hopes of cooling Dunn today. Hudson carries an impressive 2.87 ERA into Thursday’s game with a 2-1 record in five starts. The Nationals counter with lefty Scott Olsen, who is also 2-1 with a 4.35 ERA.

These two squads split the first two games of this series after the Braves picked up a 7-6 win in extra innings on Wednesday.