Miami @ Atlanta preview

Last Meeting ( Apr 10, 2013 ) Atlanta 8, Miami 0

After a month in which three of their struggling hitters started to find their stride, the Atlanta Braves open their July schedule with a Tuesday home contest against the Miami Marlins. Center fielder B.J. Upton batted .238 with four homers during the month, second baseman Dan Uggla hit .250 and right fielder Jason Heyward posted a .312 average - after batting .121 in April and .178 in May. The National League East-leading Braves swept Arizona in a three-game set in Atlanta last weekend.

Miami played its best baseball of the season in June, going 15-10 after winning just 14 times in the season’s first two months. Catcher Jeff Mathis comes in on a tear, hitting a walk-off grand slam against San Diego on Sunday followed by a three-run double in Monday’s 4-0 victory. The Braves and Marlins play six times in the next nine days.

TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Florida (Miami), SportSouth (Atlanta)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Marlins RH Tom Koehler (1-5, 4.78 ERA) vs. Braves RH Kris Medlen (5-7, 3.02).

Koehler followed his first major-league win with a short four-inning effort in his last start Wednesday against the Twins, allowing three runs on four hits with four walks. The right-hander won at San Francisco with seven innings of one-run, three-hit ball on June 20. Koehler has made three career relief appearances against the Braves, striking out eight while yielding one hit in four scoreless innings.

Medlen has improved his control substantially, walking four hitters while striking out 38 in his past seven starts. The right-hander went 4-1 in five June starts, holding Kansas City to three runs on seven hits in seven innings in his last start Tuesday. Medlen held the Marlins to one unearned run on three hits in seven innings on April 9 for his first victory of the season.

WALK-OFFS

1. The Marlins have scored 14 runs in Koehler’s past five starts, after plating five runs in his first four starts.

2. Atlanta has outscored Miami 13-2 in three games this season.

3. The Braves and Rockies are tied for the National League lead in homers with 102.

PREDICTION: Braves 3, Marlins 2