Atlanta faces Washington following Fried's strong showing
Washington Nationals (78-61, second in the NL East) vs. Atlanta Braves (87-54, first in the NL East)
Atlanta; Friday, 7 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: Patrick Corbin (11-6, 3.20 ERA) Braves: Dallas Keuchel (6-5, 3.72 ERA)
LINE: Nationals -110; over/under is 9 runs
BOTTOM LINE: Atlanta heads into the matchup fresh off a strong showing by Max Fried. Fried went seven innings, surrendering zero runs on one hit with nine strikeouts against Washington.
The Braves are 39-21 against NL East opponents. Atlanta has hit 219 home runs this season, seventh in the National League. Freddie Freeman leads the club with 38, averaging one every 14.2 at-bats.
The Nationals are 35-27 against NL East Division teams. Washington's team on-base percentage of .337 leads the National League. Anthony Rendon leads the lineup with an OBP of .408. The Braves won the last meeting 4-2. Max Fried earned his 16th victory and Ronald Acuna Jr. went 2-for-4 with a home run and an RBI for Atlanta. Stephen Strasburg took his sixth loss for Washington.
TOP PERFORMERS: Freeman leads the Braves with 71 extra base hits and is batting .300. Josh Donaldson is 8-for-33 with a double, four home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games for Atlanta.
Juan Soto leads the Nationals with 32 home runs home runs and is slugging .578. Rendon is 19-for-38 with four doubles, four home runs and 12 RBIs over the last 10 games for Washington.
LAST 10 GAMES: Braves: 8-2, .239 batting average, 2.96 ERA, outscored opponents by 23 runs
Nationals: 6-4, .264 batting average, 4.45 ERA, outscored opponents by nine runs
Braves Injuries: Jacob Webb: (elbow), Grant Dayton: (toe), Austin Riley: (knee), Nick Markakis: (wrist), Ender Inciarte: (hamstring), Alex Jackson: (knee).
Nationals Injuries: Austen Williams: (shoulder), Jonny Venters: (shoulder), Koda Glover: (forearm), Roenis Elias: (hamstring), Adam Eaton: (knee).