Braves vs. Dodgers

Trailing by two runs in the bottom of the 9th, the Braves came back to beat the Dodgers 4-2. Andre Ethier got things started in the 1st with a double, driving in Ryan Theriot to give Los Angeles a 1-0 lead. After allowing the 1st inning run, Tommy Hanson found himself in a pitchers duel with Chad Billingsley. The score remained 1-0 until the bottom of the 6th when Atlanta tied it up on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Jason Heyward to score Omar Infante. The Dodgers would take the lead once again as a throwing error by Brooks Conrad in the 8th allowed two runs to score. Down 3-1 in the 9th, L.A. pitching walked in a run cutting their lead to 3-2. With the bases loaded, Melky Cabrera then hit a single to drive home the winning runs.

Tommy Hanson went 7 innings, giving up one run on five hits while striking out three. Peter Moylan, who pitched the 9th, got the win for Atlanta. Chad Billingsley went 7 innings, allowing one run on five hits while striking out eight for Los Angeles. Hong-Chih Kuo gave up three runs in his 1.1 innings of relief for the Dodgers to take the loss.

Marlins vs. Pirates

The Marlins fell to the Pirates in their series opener 7-1. A sacrifice fly by Garrett Jones and a single by Pedro Alvarez gave Pittsburgh an early 2-0 lead in the 1st. Florida got their only run of the game in the 4th on a ground out by Dan Uggla to score Logan Morrison.  The Pirates would go on to score four runs in the 6th on a double by Jones, followed by an Alvarez single. Andrew McCutchen homered in the 7th for Pittsburgh to make it 7-1.

Chris Volstad took the loss, going 5 innings and allowing five runs on five hits while only striking out two.  James McDonald got the win, going 7 innings and giving up one run on three hits while striking out six.

Mets vs. Astros

The Mets started their road trip off with a win as they beat the Astros 3-1. Carlos Beltran homered for the Mets in the 4th to give them a 1-0 lead. Houston tied it up in the 6th on a double by Chris Johnson. The game remained tied until the 9th, when David Wright scored on a wild pitch and then Jeff Francoeur tripled to score Beltran.

Jon Niese got a no decision after pitching 7 innings. He gave up one run on seven hits while striking out five. Pedro Feliciano got the win after pitching a third of an inning in relief. Wandy Rodriguez took a no decision as well after pitching 7 innings and allowing one run on four hits while striking out six. Matt Lindstrom took the loss for Houston after giving up the two runs in the 9th. Hisanori Takahashi closed out the game in place of Francisco Rodriguez to record his first save.

Phillies vs. Mets

R.A. Dickey and Cole Hamels locked up in a pitchers’ duel Friday night at Citi Field.  Both pitchers went the distance, but the night belonged to Dickey as the Mets defeated the Phillies 1-0.

Dickey’s knuckleball baffled the Phillies hitters all night long, and as he cruised through five hitless innings, Mets fans wondered if this might be the first no-hitter in franchise history.   But it was the opposing pitcher that spoiled that bid as Hamels hit a clean single to right field with one out in the sixth inning.   Meanwhile, Hamels kept the Mets off balance and off of the scoreboard.  It looked like the Mets had taken a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning when Mike Hessman hit a drive to left field that the umpires called a home run.  However, after a lengthy replay review, the umps ruled fan interference on the play and placed Hessman on third base.   Despite being on third with no outs, the Mets stranded Hessman and let a golden opportunity slip by.

In the sixth, the Mets finally broke through.  With two outs and no one on base, David Wright and Carlos Beltran hit back-to-back doubles to plate the game’s first – and only – run.  Dickey (8-5) didn’t allow a base runner after Hamels’ single, finishing with seven strikeouts in his nine innings.  Hamels (7-9) took the hard-luck loss for the Phils.

 

 

Braves vs. Dodgers

Pitching also stole the spotlight in Atlanta on Friday night as the first place Braves defeated the Dodgers by a score of 1-o.

The Braves’ Tim Hudson and the Dodgers’  Hiroki Kuroda matched zeroes for six innings.  The game’s lone run came in the seventh, when Brooks Conrad, playing third base in place of the injured Chipper Jones, homered to center field off of Kuroda.  

Hudson (14-5) allowed just 3 hits over eight innings of work, striking out six.  Kuroda (8-11) took the loss despite allowing just three hits in his seven innings.  Braves’ closer Billy Wagner came on in the ninth and locked down his 29th save of the season.

 

 

Nationals vs. Diamondbacks

The Nationals scored early and let their pitching do the rest, as the Nats defeated the Diamondbacks 4-2 in Washington.

The Nationals scored three runs in the first off of Arizona starter Joe Saunders (1-2), highlighted by a Ryan Zimmerman two-run single.   Wil Nieves extended Washington’s lead to 4-0 with a solo home run in the second.  The D-Backs cut the Nats lead in half with two fifth inning runs off of starter John Lannan, but managed just one hit after that.  Lannan (4-5) allowed just four hits over seven innings, striking out five.  Sean Burnett pitched two perfect innings, striking out four, to pick up his second save on the season.

 

 

Marlins vs. Reds

The Reds roughed up Marlins’ ace Josh Johnson Friday night as they cruised to a 7-2 victory in Cincinnati.

The Reds jumped on Johnson in the first inning, scoring three runs courtesy of RBI singles by Joey Votto, Scott Rolen, and Jay Bruce.  Bruce later homered as the Reds built a 7-0 lead.   The Marlins’ only offense came off of the bat of rookie Mike Stanton, who hit solo home runs in both the sixth and eighth innings. 

Edinson Volquez (3-1) scattered eight hits over six innings of work, allowing just one run and striking out six.  Johnson (10-5) lasted just 3.2 innings in the loss, allowing six runs and ten hits.

Mets vs. Rockies

The Mets beat the Rockies 1-0 Tuesday night. This game featured a great pitchers duel between starters Mike Pelfrey and Ubaldo Jimenez. The only run of the game came in the bottom of the 7th. After walking Chris Carter to start the inning, Jimenez then gave up a double to Josh Thole to put men on second and third. A few batters later, Jose Reyes hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Jeff Francoeur, who pinch-ran for Carter.

Pelfrey went 7 strong innings to get the win, giving up no runs and only four hits while striking out four.  Jimenez also went 7 great innings, but took the loss. Jimenez allowed one run on four hits while striking out eight. Francisco Rodriguez recorded his 25th save of the season for the Mets.

Marlins vs. Nationals

The Marlins took the series opener 8-2 Tuesday. Florida jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the 1st on an Dan Uggla home run. Uggla drove in two more runs in the 3rd on a double to left field to score Hanley Ramirez and Gaby Sanchez. Washington got on the board in the bottom of the 3rd after a field error by Wes Helms allowed Ivan Rodriguez to score. Florida added three more runs in the 5th with doubles by Sanchez and Helms. Logan Morrison singled in the 6th to score Ramirez, making it 8-1 Florida. Washington had the bases loaded in the bottom of the 7th, but could only get one run home to make it 8-2.

Anibal Sanchez got the win, going 6.2 innings and giving up two runs on five hits while striking out seven. Stephen Strasburg took the loss, going 4.1 innings and allowing six runs on six hits while striking out four.

Phillies vs. Dodgers

The Phillies fell to the Dodgers 15-9. Andre Ethier drove in Los Angeles’ first two runs of the game with a single in the 1st and a double in the 3rd. Ethier would score later in the 3rd on a single by Jay Gibbons. The Dodgers scored four more runs in the 4th to make it 7-0 Dodgers. Placido Polanco scored the Phillies first run in the bottom of the 4th. In the bottom of the 5th, Wilson Valdez scored on a ground out by Polanco. Ross Gload followed with a two-run shot t0 right field to cut the lead to 7-4. As soon as the Phillies made it a close game, they gave it all right back, giving up four more runs to L.A. in the top of the 6th. Domonic Brown homered in the 6th for the Phillies to make it 11-5. Los Angeles responded in the 7th with two more runs on a single by Matt Kemp. Philadelphia put up two runs in the 7th on a homer by Gload to make it 13-7.  In the top of the 9th, Casey Blake made it 15-7 Dodgers with a two run home run to left field. The Phillies fought back in the bottom of the inning, but were only able to add two runs on a double by Brown.

Vicente Padilla got the win, going 5 innings and giving up four runs on six hits while striking out two. Kyle Kendrick took the loss, lasting only 3.1 innings and giving up six runs on eight hits while striking out one.

Braves vs. Astros

The Braves beat the Astros by a score of 4-2. After entering the game for an injured Chipper Jones, Brooks Conrad scored the games first run in the 7th on a single by Troy Glaus. The Braves defense was sloppy in the bottom of the 8th, however, with errors by Alex Gonzalez and Omar Infante allowing Houston to take a 2-0 lead. Solo shots by Conrad and Glaus in the to of the 9th gave Atlanta the lead.

Braves starter Jair Jurrjens went 7.1 innings and got the no decision. He gave up two runs on six hits while striking out three. Jonny Venters got the win for Atlanta after facing just one batter. Houston starter J.A. Happ also got a no decision, going 6.1 innings and allowing one run on two hits while striking out six. Matt Lindstrom took the loss for the Astros. Billy Wagner  came in to pitch a 1-2-3 9th to get his 28th save of the season for Atlanta.

Braves vs. Marlins

 

The first place Braves used late inning heroics on Saturday night to defeat the Marlins by a score of 10-5 in Miami.

 

The Braves got off to a quick start as Martin Prado led off the game with a home run off of starter Anibal Sanchez.  However, the Marlins answered back with a run in the bottom of the first, and used long balls from Dan Uggla and Mike Stanton to build a 5-2 lead against Atlanta starter Kris Medlen.  The Marlins held that lead until the top of the eighth, when the Braves exploded against Florida’s bullpen.  Troy Glaus walked with the bases loaded, and Eric Hinske followed with a 2-run single to tie the game at 5.  Brooks Conrad then followed with a pinch-hit grand slam off of Marlins reliever Burke Bandenhop to give the Braves a 9-5 lead.  The Braves added another run to cap off an 8 run inning.

 

Braves reliever Jesse Chavez (2-1) pitched a perfect seventh inning in relief and earned the victory, while Jhan Marinez (1-1) picked up the loss for Florida.

 

 

Rockies vs. Phillies

 

The Phillies jumped all over Cy Young candidate Ubaldo Jimenez and rolled to a 10-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies in Philadelphia.

 

Jimenez (15-2) held the Phillies off of the scoreboard for the first two innings, but then failed to record an out in the third as the Phillies scored seven runs.  Ryan Howard hit a 3-run triple to put the Phillies on the board, and then scored on a wild pitch.  Later in the inning, Greg Dobbs singled home a run, and Jimmy Rollins tripled home two more as the Phillies build a 7-0 lead.  Jimenez was charged with 6 runs over his 2+ innings, allowing just 3 hits but walking 6.

 

Those seven runs were more than enough for Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick (6-4).  Kendrick pitched seven innings and allowed just one run on a solo homer by Ian Stewart.  The Phillies added two more in the sixth courtesy of a Raul Ibanez two-run homer, and Rollins singled home another run in the seventh to cap off the Phillies scoring.  The Rockies scored a run off of Jose Contreras, but Vance Worley pitched a scoreless ninth inning to close out the game.

 

 

Mets vs. Dodgers

 

The Mets offensive struggles continued Saturday afternoon in Los Angeles.  Despite strong pitching, the Mets couldn’t score a run when they needed to and fell 3-2 to the Dodgers in 13 innings.

 

Mets starter Mike Pelfrey made it through five innings for the first time since June 25.  He allowed two runs and six hits over those five innings, and departed with New York trailing 2-0.   Dodgers starter Carlos Monasterios pitched five scoreless innings, but LA went to the bullpen in the sixth, and the Mets finally broke through.  Rod Barajas singled home a run, and Jose Reyes singled home another to tie the game at 2.  The Mets threatened to take the lead, but left the bases loaded.

 

From there, the bullpens took over.  The Dodgers emptied their bullpen, and called upon their last pitcher, George Sherrill, for the 13th.  Sherrill pitched a perfect inning, and the Dodgers finally broke through in the bottom of the frame.  The Mets were forced to call upon Oliver Perez as they ran out of relievers.  Perez came in to bail the Mets out in the 12th, and retired the first batter in the 13th before facing James Loney.  Loney hit a long home run to right center to send the Dodgers fans home happy, and hand the Mets yet another walk-off loss.  Sherrill (1-1) picked up the victory, and Perez (0-4) suffered the loss.

 

 

Nationals vs. Brewers

 

The Nationals mounted a ninth inning rally to tie the Brewers in Milwaukee, but the Brewers answered in the bottom of the ninth to defeat the Nats by a score of 4-3.

 

Nationals starter J.D. Martin was forced the leave the game in the third inning after aggravating a bulging disk in his back.  Ryan Braun and Jim Edmonds homered to give the Brewers a 2-0 lead.  Brewers starter Manny Parra pitched well, but allowed a run in the fifth and a run in the sixth as the Nats tied the score.  The Brewers scored in the bottom of the sixth on a double by Jonathan Lucroy, and took a 3-2 lead into the ninth.  John Axford came on to attempt the save for Milwaukee, but the Nationals loaded the bases with no outs.  Pinch hitter Adam Dunn hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Ryan Zimmerman with the tying run, but Axford retired the next two Nats to limit the damage.

 

In the bottom of the ninth, Drew Storen came in for the Nationals.  With one out, Storen allowed a single to Rickie Weeks and walked Joe Inglett to bring up Ryan Braun.  Braun singled off of the left field wall to bring home Weeks and give the Brewers a walk-off victory.  Axford (6-1) picked up the victory despite blowing the save, and Storen (2-2) was tagged with the loss.

Mets vs. Twins

The Mets started off their series with the Twins with a win, as they beat Minnesota 5-2. The Twins got things going with a lead-off home run by Denard Span in the 1st. Span knocked in the Twins second run in the 5th on a ground out to second base. The Mets scored three runs in the 3rd inning on doubles by David Wright and Jason Bay, and a single by Ike Davis. The Mets scored another run in the 5th on a sacrifice fly by Jose Reyes and again the 6th on a Wright home run.

Mike Pelfrey got the win, his 10th of the year. Pelfrey went 6 innings and allowed two runs on six hits. Minnesota’s Kevin Slowey took the loss. He lasted 6 innings, giving up five runs on six hits. Francisco Rodriguez recorded his 17th save.

Go to Real Dirty Mets Blog for more.

Braves vs. Tigers

The Braves ended their three-game losing streak and reached a few milestones as they beat the Tigers 3-1. Detroit scored their one and only run of the night in the 1st inning on an RBI single by Brennan Boesch. Atlanta tied it up in the 2nd on a single by Melky Cabrera. Brian McCann hit a home run in the 4th inning, his 9th of the year and the 100th of his career, to make it 2-1 Braves. The Braves scored again in the 8th with a home run by Brooks Conrad.

Kris Medlen got the win, pitching 6.2 innings and giving up one run on six hits. Andrew Oliver, making his Major League debut, took the loss. He went six innings and gave up two runs on five hits. Billy Wagner came in to the 9th to get the save, his 400th career save.

For more info go to Braves Baseball.

Marlins vs. Padres

The Marlins fell to the Padres 3-0. Florida’s bats were quiet for much of the night. The Marlins left nine men on base and only had one hit with runners in scoring position. The Padres didn’t do much at the plate either until the 7th when they scored one run on a single by Oscar Salazar and two more on a home run by Will Venable.

Chris Volstad took the loss, throwing 6 innings and giving up three runs on seven hits. Clayton Richard got the win, going 6 innings and allowing no runs on five hits. Heath Bell recorded his 20th save of the season for San Diego.

Check out Fish Guts for more info.

Phillies vs. Blue Jays

The Phillies crushed the Blue Jays winning 9-0. The Blue Jays batters couldn’t hit much off Roy Halladay.  Lyle Overbay did go 2-2 for Toronto. The Phillies scored in the 2nd inning on a single by Ross Gload, and again in the 4th on an RBI ground out by Shane Victorino. The Phillies big inning came in the 6th when they scored six runs on singles by Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, and a double by Gload.  Victorino homered in the 8th to make it 9-0.

Halladay got the win, tossing seven innings and giving up no runs on six hits. Jesse Litsch took the loss, going only 4 innings and allowing six runs on seven hits.

For more, go to Phillies Phandom.

Nationals vs. Orioles

Sloppy defense cost the Nationals a win as they fell to the Orioles 7-6. Adam Dunn got Washington on the board in the 1st and 3rd innings with a  ground out and sacrifice fly. Ivan Rodriguez singled in a run in the 3rd also to make it 3-0 Nationals. Washington would score three more runs in the 4th on a doubles by Nyjer Morgan and Dunn. Baltimore broke through in the 5th to score three runs on a sac fly by Miguel Tejada and singles by Nick Markakis and Adam Jones, cutting the Nationals lead to 6-3. The Orioles tied it up in the 8th on a two run homer by Scott Moore and a Corey Patterson single. Baltimore went on to score the winning run in the bottom of the 9th on a throwing error by Christian Guzman.

J.D. Martin lasted only 4.1 innings and got a no decision. He gave up three runs on six hits. Tyler Clippard took the loss for the Nationals. Jake Arrieta also went 4.1 innings taking a no decision. He allowed six runs on eight hits. Alfredo Simon got the win for Baltimore.

For more go to Centerfield Gate.

Phillies vs. Red Sox

The Phillies hoped for a better outcome as they took on the Red Sox in game two of their series at Fenway.  Instead, Philadelphia’s starter gave up nine runs for the second game in a row, and the Red Sox cruised to a 10-2 victory.

Boston starter Daisuke Matsuzaka was scratched just before game time due to a strained forearm, and the Phillies took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second off of emergency starter Scott Atchinson thanks to a Brian Schneider two-run double.   However, the Red Sox jumped on pitcher Joe Blanton in the bottom of the inning.  JD Drew started off the scoring with a solo home run, and Daniel Nava hit a grand slam in his first major league at bat to give Boston a 5-2 lead. 

The Sox added three runs in the third and one more in the fourth off of Blanton (1-5), who gave up 13 hits in addition to nine runs in his four innings of work.  Boston reliever Manny Delcarmen (2-2) pitched two scoreless innings in relief and earned the victory.

 

Mets vs. Orioles

The Mets won back-to-back games on the road for the first time since last July as they defeated the last place Orioles 3-1 Saturday night in Baltimore.

Jose Reyes led off the game with a home run off of Baltimore starter Brian Matusz.  The Orioles tied the game at 1 in the bottom of the first off of Hisanori Takahashi on a Nick Markakis RBI double.   The game remained 1-1 until the top of the sixth, when the Mets took the lead.  The Orioles failed to turn a double play on a David Wright comebacker, allowing the Mets to score the go-ahead run.  Jeff Francoeur added a solo home run in the eighth inning to cap the scoring. 

Takahashi (5-2) gave up just one run and six hits over seven innings to earn the victory, while Matusz (2-7) took the loss.  Francisco Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth for his 13th save.

 

Nationals vs. Indians

Cleveland rookie catcher Carlos Santana hit his first career home run, and the Indians jumped on Washington starter JD Martin for four runs in the second inning as they defeated the Nationals 7-1 in Cleveland.

Playing in his second major league game, the highly touted Santana drove in three runs to lead the Indians offense.  Indians starter Fausto Carmona (5-5) went nine strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out seven.  Ryan Zimmerman‘s eighth inning home run spoiled Carmona’s shutout bid.  Martin (0-2) pitched into the eighth inning, but allowed seven runs and took the loss.

The Nationals hope to avoid a sweep when they send phenom Stephen Strasburg to the mound on Sunday.

 

Braves vs. Twins

For the second straight night, two first place teams played a one run game.  After falling in the series opener, the Braves rebounded to defeat the Twins by a score of 3-2 at Target Field in Minnesota.

Braves starter Derek Lowe and Twins starter Nick Blackburn each allowed only two runs, but neither factored in the decision.  After the Twins took a 1-0 lead in the second, the Braves answered with two in the fifth thanks to a Melky Cabrera solo homer and an RBI double from Brooks Conrad.  A Joe Mauer double tied the game in the sixth, and the score remained even at 2 until the top of the ninth.  With runners on the corners, Conrad successfully executed a squeeze bunt, scoring Gregor Blanco with the go-ahead run. 

Atlanta’s Jonny Venters (2-0) struck out Jason Kubel with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth to earn the victory, while Minnesota’s Matt Guerrier (1-2) took the loss.  Billy Wagner worked around a one out single to nail down his 11th save for the Braves.

 

Marlins vs. Devil Rays

After winning on Friday in Tampa, the Marlins fell 6-5 on Saturday night as the Rays evened the Battle of Florida at one game apiece.

The Rays jumped out to an early 5-1 lead, thanks to home runs by Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, and Sean Rodrgiuez off of Florida starer Ricky Nolasco (5-5).   However, the Marlins battled back against Tampa starter Matt Garza.  Wes Helms hit a two run homer in the fourth and the Fish scored another in the fifth to cut the lead to 5-4.  After the Rays added a run in the seventh, the Marlins answered back in the eighth with one of their own, but couldn’t bring home the tying run. 

Closer Rafael Soriano pitched a perfect ninth for Tampa to earn save number 16 and preserve the victory for Garza (7-4) and the Rays.

According to David O’Brien of the AJC, the Braves have sent Brooks Conrad back to AAA Gwinnett since Kelly Johnson is coming back from the DL.

Conrad had a great cup of coffee as he hit .344 and had 2 three baggers, two home runs and eight total RBI.

I don’t know about this move, but i’m not Bobby Cox…

Rollins breaks out of his slump

Jimmy Rollins went 2-5 with 2RBI and a run scored last night, further breaking out of his slump while helping his Phillies win versus the New York Mets 7-2.  The Phillies got all their runs in the first three innings against Mets starter Livan Hernandez(5-4) who lost his third decision in a row and looked terrible from the start last night.  Greg Dobbs, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley each had two RBI each for Philly to move back into first place all alone in the NL East.  Rodrigo Lopez(1-0) won his first game in almost two full years pitching into the seventh inning only giving up six hits and two earned runs.  To get more info on the Phillies and their win last night, check out Phillies Phandom.

Some bright spots for the Mets were that Ryan Church continued to be hot, going 3-4 with a run scored, and his one out actually was a trapped ball by Greg Dobbs.  Also, the bullpen in their second straight day of long relief, pitched five innings of one hit ball.  To get additional info on the loss, check out The Real Dirty Mets Blog.

The Phillies and Mets will meet up today at 4pM on the Fox game of the week, Fernando Nieve takes on Jamie Moyer.

Volstad didn't have it tonigh

Rain delays aren’t a new thing to the Marlins being in Miami, and lately the Pirates have seen their fair share too.  The Pirates went through two rain delays Thursday against the Mets and dealt with another delay during the opening game of a series in Florida last night.  After all was said and done though, former Brave Charlie Morton(1-1) pitched six innings of one hit and no run ball against a big hitting Marlin team to get the win.  Pittsburgh pitching chased Marlins starter Chris Volstad(5-8) after only three innings and 47 pitches but four earned runs and added more later against Marlin relief.  Three pirates contributed two RBI each for Pittsburgh to take the opening game of the set and knock the Marlins out of their first place tie temporarily.

The Marlins’ Hanley Ramirez ended his RBI streak at 10 games when he failed to drive any runs in during this game and actually had no hits as well.  Catcher Scott Baker contributed three RBI on two hits and had two RBI in the game to lead the fish.

The two teams match back up at 6:10 in Miami tonight.

Nice debut

Brooks Conrad who was just called up to replace the injured Kelly Johnson wasted no time in making an impact for the Bravos.  In the seventh inning of a 5-5 game between the Nats and Braves, Conrad hit a three run home run to give the Braves the lead in a game they would eventually win 8-5 over the last place Nats.  Neither starting pitcher in this game could last a full five innings, and it was up to which relief pitchers could get the job done to win it.  The Braves had the better relief pitching, but by a slim margin as Rafael Soriano gave up two runs in his save chance in the ninth to record his ninth save by one run.  Boone Logan(1-0) worked a perfect 1.2 innings to earn the win for the hot Braves, winners of 5 in a row now, and they stayed two games behind the Phillies and moved into a third place tie with the Mets.  Jesus Colome(1-1) gave up the three run home run and took the loss for the Nationals who have now lost four games in a row.  Check out The Braves Baseball Blog for more.

The Nationals continuously fought back in this game, including Christian Guzman getting two hits in four at bats and driving in three runs.  Adam Dunn hit his 21st home run as well to lead the team.  Check out CenterfieldGate for more Nats news.

The two teams continue their series at 1:05PM on Saturday afternoon.

Johnson to the DL

According to the AJC the Braves have put 2B Kelly Johnson on the 15 day DL with right wrist tendinitis and called up Brooks Conrad from AAA Gwinnett. This could be why Johnson was struggling and was subsequently replaced by Prado in the starting lineup.  Conrad was named to the International League’s all star team before his call up.

Check back to NLEC for more NL East news and The Braves Baseball Blog for all Braves news.