• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Phillies-Braves Preview

Jun 2, 2010 - 5:22 AM By BRETT HUSTON STATS Writer

Philadelphia (28-22) at Atlanta (29-22), 1:05 p.m. EDT

As the Philadelphia Phillies' offensive woes continue, the Atlanta Braves' hot hitting shows no signs of slowing down.

The Braves seek their first eight-game winning streak in seven seasons and try to complete a sweep of the visiting Phillies on Wednesday afternoon.

Philadelphia (28-23) has watched its powerful lineup go cold over the past 10 games since Jimmy Rollins (strained right calf) made his second trip to the disabled list. The reigning NL champs have hit a dreadful .197 and totaled 13 runs while going 2-8.

Ryan Howard's homer Tuesday was the Phillies' first in eight games, but it wasn't enough to help them seize first place in the NL East back from Atlanta (30-22). Troy Glaus' three-run shot in the rain gave the Braves a first-inning cushion, and they held on after an hour delay for a 7-3 win to jump 1 1/2 games ahead of Philadelphia.

"It's not easy. You've got to keep your focus," Glaus said of hitting in the rain. "As long as we're out there playing, you've got to play through it."

Glaus took over the team RBI lead (40) from rookie Jason Heyward by homering for a third straight game, but he's hardly the only Atlanta hitter who's in the zone. Chipper Jones is 8 for 20 with seven RBIs and five walks over his last six games, while Martin Prado is batting .414 (12 for 29) in that same stretch.

The Braves have scored at least five runs in each of their seven consecutive victories, something they haven't done since scoring five or more in nine straight July 3-15, 2007.

It's been much longer since Atlanta has won eight in a row, which it can do Wednesday with Derek Lowe (7-4, 4.86 ERA) on the mound. The Braves' last eight-game winning streak was from July 4-11, 2003, en route to their last 100-win season.

Lowe has looked much better over his last four starts - going 3-1 with a 2.88 ERA after sporting a 6.16 ERA through his first seven outings. He limited Pittsburgh to one run and four hits over seven innings in a 7-3 win Friday.

"I've been trying to mix it up a lot more of late. It seems to be working," Lowe told the Braves' official website. "I'll try to not change anything and go out there Wednesday and try and pitch another good game."

The right-hander might want to change his approach against the Phillies' lineup. Lowe, who turned 38 on Tuesday, is 0-2 with a 9.90 ERA in two starts versus Philadelphia in 2010, after winning his previous five decisions against the Phillies.

Chase Utley is one of the few Philadelphia hitters to have sustained success against Lowe. He's 12 for 27 (.444), while Howard and Raul Ibanez are hitting a combined .177 (11 for 62) off the sinkerballer.

Lowe's opponent might be a good candidate to finally silence Atlanta's lineup. Kyle Kendrick (3-2, 5.04) is 4-1 with a 2.72 ERA in eight games against the Braves, with a Brian McCann homer the only run he's allowed in his last 18 innings in the series.

Kendrick pitched eight scoreless innings at Atlanta on April 20 in the Phillies' 4-3, 10-inning loss.

Philadelphia's offense did enough to help Kendrick out in his latest start. The right-hander gave up five hits and two unearned runs in six innings of Friday's 3-2 victory at Florida.

Kendrick has allowed 10 runs over nine innings in two afternoon starts this season, and has a career 6.03 ERA during the day compared with a 4.36 ERA at night.