Atlanta @ Florida preview
Sun Life Stadium
Last Meeting ( Mar 17, 2010 ) Atlanta 4, Florida 2
The Atlanta Braves and Florida Marlins have been jockeying for position in the NL East standings all season and trading places in second and third place for the past week.
Now they get to square off head to head for the first time this season.
The surging Braves head to the Sunshine State to begin a three-game series on Tuesday, and they do so having won 10 of 13 to move a half game ahead of the Marlins for second place in the division.
The Marlins are happy to get home after a 2-3 road trip. They're 12-10 at Sun Life Stadium, including a 5-1 mark on their last home stand.
The road trip wasn't all bad, though. Florida broke out of a brief offensive slump with a 13-0 win Sunday against the Chicago White Sox, snapping a three-game losing streak in which it scored only three runs.
The 13 runs were a season-high for Florida, which continues to get solid production from Jorge Cantu, Dan Uggla and Cody Ross in the middle of the lineup. Cantu is hitting .429 over the past nine games, Ross has hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games and is hitting .415 in that span and Uggla has hit six home runs in 10 games to give him 12 for the season, which is tied with Arizona's Kelly Johnson for the NL lead.
They'll try to keep the momentum going against right-hander Kenshin Kawakami, who has been riddled with bad luck and poor run support in 2010.
Kawakami (0-6, 4.98 ERA) had his best outing of the season Wednesday, throwing six scoreless innings against the Cincinnati Reds, but he still didn't manage to break through, taking a no-decision in a 5-4 Braves' victory. He was limited to 79 pitches because of a blister on his right foot and a nagging back strain, but expects to make his scheduled start on Tuesday.
The Braves have averaged only 2.79 runs in Kawakami's eight starts, and he has been on the wrong end of two shutouts.
Marlins right-hander Anibal Sanchez (3-2, 3.28 ERA) wouldn't mind making it three shutouts against Kawakami.
Sanchez is looking to win his third consecutive start, something he hasn't done since his rookie year of 2006, when he accomplished the feat twice.
After two rocky outings to begin the season, Sanchez hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his last six starts. He threw seven scoreless innings at the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday, limiting Albert Pujols and company to four hits and two walks while striking out eight.
He'll have deal with a bevy of hot hitters who have powered the Braves' surge in the standings, and some of them have been unlikely heroes.
Eric Hinske, earning more time while Matt Diaz is on the disabled list, has hit .436 over his last 13 games and has four homers and seven RBIs in the last seven. Rookie Jason Heyward is hitting .346 with a homer and five RBIs in his last seven games and outfielder Melky Cabrera has shown signs of busting his early-season slump - hitting .385 over his past six games.
Sanchez is 3-5 with a 4.71 ERA in nine starts against the Braves. Catcher Brian McCann has had good luck against him, going 5-for-16 with a homer and five RBIs.