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May 25, 2010 - 1:05 AM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Atlanta (23-21) at Florida (23-22), 7:10 p.m. EDT

After a shaky start, Anibal Sanchez has spent much of the past month proving his worth in the Florida Marlins' rotation.

Atlanta Braves starter Kenshin Kawakami is hoping his latest outing was the first step in putting his dreadful beginning behind him.

Sanchez seeks his third straight victory Tuesday night in the opener of the Marlins' three-game set with the visiting Braves, who hope Kawakami can deliver his first win of 2010.

Sanchez (3-2, 3.28 ERA) was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in his first two starts, but he seems to be pitching at a level similar to the one he hit as a rookie in 2006.

Sanchez hasn't allowed more than two runs in a start since April 16, going 3-1 with a 2.17 ERA. He gave up four hits over seven innings Wednesday at St. Louis, striking out a season-high eight in a 5-1 victory.

"This is the most consistency that I've seen coming out of him," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "Command. Breaking pitch. Threw strikes. ... I think that's the second or third start in a row now that he's been pretty good."

Sanchez is 0-2 with a 9.24 ERA in three home outings against Atlanta (23-21), and 3-5 with a 4.71 ERA in nine starts overall.

He was, however, the opposing starter when Kawakami (0-6, 4.98) suffered his first major league loss in 2009. Sanchez yielded two runs over six innings in a 6-2 win at Turner Field on April 16, 2009.

Kawakami finished his rookie season at 7-12 with a 3.86 ERA, and the losses are again piling up in 2010. The right-hander lost his first six starts before leaving without decisions in his last two.

His latest outing was easily his best, even though he was forced to leave with back pain and blisters on his right foot. Kawakami still held Cincinnati to five hits over six scoreless innings Wednesday, with only a late bullpen collapse preventing him from his first victory in the Braves' 5-4 win.

"I threw a lot with my feeling and my soul," Kawakami told the Braves' official website. "Even though it hurt, I just wanted to contribute."

Kawakami, trying to avoid becoming the first Atlanta starter since Pascual Perez in 1985 to start 0-7, is 1-2 with a 5.94 ERA in three starts against Florida (23-22).

While the back and blisters have improved enough for Kawakami to make his start Tuesday, it's unclear if Jason Heyward will be in the lineup. The star rookie had been playing with a sore left thumb for more than a week before only pinch-hitting Sunday in Pittsburgh.

He still has good mobility in the thumb, leaving Atlanta to doubt there's a broken bone or ligament damage.

"I just have to get some of the swelling down," Heyward said after the Braves' 3-2, 10-inning loss to the Pirates snapped a five-game winning streak. "Pain isn't the issue. It's just a matter of being able to actually bend it to hold the bat."

The Marlins totaled one run in their first two interleague games at Chicago, but broke out Sunday to avoid being swept by the White Sox. Florida hit a season-high five homers - two by Cody Ross - in a 13-0 rout that snapped a three-game slide.

"It was a good day for us," Ross said, "after the first two games of not being able to do pretty much anything."