Nationals aim to clinch road series against Braves

The Washington Nationals have an opportunity to become the first team to clinch a road series this season against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon in the finale of the three-game set.

Washington evened the weekend series on Saturday in an atypical way for the upstart club. The Nationals, who lead baseball in scoring (286 runs) but also own the second-worst ERA in the National League (4.87), allowed just one hit in a 2-0 win over Atlanta 2-0.

As Washington looks to climb back to .500, taking two of three from the Braves will be no easy task.

Left-hander Foster Griffin (5-2, 4.02 ERA) will be eager to turn around a rough pair of starts for Washington. After yielding just one earned run across 20 innings in three previous starts, Griffin has allowed 14 earned runs in his last two outings.

Despite giving up five runs in five innings to the New York Mets on Tuesday, Griffin earned the win as the Nationals posted a 9-6 victory.

"I talked to him for a while after the start and just kept telling him how great of a job he did," Washington manager Blake Butera said of Griffin's last appearance. "Obviously he would've liked to have less runs up on the board, but he grinded through that one. The fact that he was able to get us through five and keep it where it was, that was huge."

Griffin, a former first-round pick in 2014 by the Kansas City Royals, signed a one-year, $5.5 million deal with Washington in December after spending the last three years playing in Japan. He had seven career games with the Royals and Toronto Blue Jays in 2020 and 2022.

Griffin faced Atlanta for the first time on April 21, tossing six innings of three-run, five-hit ball in an 11-4 win.

The Braves suffered just their fourth shutout of the year on Saturday, but their third in the last 10 games. Atlanta's pitching staff, however, has remained a constant. The Braves lead the majors with a 3.06 mark.

Veteran Martin Perez (2-2, 2.85 ERA) will make his 11th appearance (seventh start) of the season for Atlanta in the series finale. Perez, 35, tossed five innings in a no-decision against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday, allowing four runs on five hits, while striking out a career-high 10 batters. The Braves won 8-4.

Perez, a starter for most of his 15-year major league career, has filled in any role the team has asked of him.

"He's been a great pro," Braves manager Walt Weiss said. "I told him that he's got a punch card from my office, because I'm always calling him in and telling him we're changing roles with him. Going to and from the bullpen, into the rotation, sometimes late notice based on our needs. He's done it with a smile and has been really valuable for us. What a pro."

Perez is 1-2 with a 6.20 ERA in six career appearances (four starts) against the Nationals.

-Field Level Media