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May 20, 2010 - 4:24 AM By MIKE LIPKA STATS Writer

Cincinnati (23-16) at Atlanta (19-20), 1:05 p.m. EDT

Tommy Hanson made 75 appearances for five different minor-league teams before making his debut for the Atlanta Braves, while Mike Leake went straight from Arizona State to the Cincinnati Reds.

Despite their different paths, the results have been similar for the two promising young right-handers, who will square off Thursday as their clubs finish a two-game set in Atlanta.

Originally a 22nd-round draft pick in 2005, Hanson (3-3, 2.88 ERA) developed into one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, and the 23-year-old has lived up to the hype through 29 major league starts.

Leake, meanwhile, quickly burst onto the scene after the Reds selected him with the eighth overall pick last year. Following a brilliant collegiate career, the 22-year-old has made a smooth transition to the big leagues and is still unbeaten through seven starts.

Leake (4-0, 3.09) posted his fourth consecutive quality start Saturday against St. Louis, beating Adam Wainwright and holding the Cardinals to two runs in six innings of a 4-3 victory.

He became the first Cincinnati rookie to win his first four decisions since 1976, when Santo Alcala began 5-0 while Pat Zachary started 4-0.

"I'm past being surprised," manager Dusty Baker told the Reds' official website. "Just do your thing."

Even though their four-game winning streak was snapped with a 5-4 loss to Atlanta on Wednesday, the Reds (23-17) remain the surprising leaders in the NL Central, holding a half-game edge on St. Louis.

They've moved in front by winning nine of their last 11, with their pitchers posting a 2.46 ERA and their defense committing one error in that stretch.

The Braves (20-20) became the first team to score more than four runs against Cincinnati since May 7, when the Reds lost 14-7 to the Chicago Cubs.

Atlanta blew a 4-0 lead in the final two innings, with Reds rookie Chris Heisey hitting a pinch-hit home run off Braves closer Billy Wagner in the ninth to tie the game.

But Jason Heyward, Atlanta's own rookie, ended it with a two-out RBI double in the bottom of the inning. The 20-year-old had three extra-base hits in the game and leads all rookies with eight homers and 29 RBIs.

"It doesn't surprise me anymore," Wagner said of Heyward. "He's not 20, he's about a 10-year vet the way he carries himself and handles all the attention and the pressure that's put on him. It's great to play with him."

The win - Atlanta's seventh in its last nine games - got the club back to .500 for the first time since it was 8-8 on April 23.

One of the losses in that stretch came with Hanson on the mound, but he'll try to bounce back after allowing a season-high five runs in seven innings of an 11-1 loss to Arizona on Saturday. He struck out 10 and walked none, but was hurt primarily by a four-run fifth inning.

"He was overpowering, I thought, most of the night," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "He had as good stuff as he's ever going to have."

In his lone appearance against the Reds, Hanson pitched six innings in a 7-0 win at Cincinnati on June 18.