Nationals 7 - 3 Braves
Final/11
  for this game

Nats, Werth resume set versus Braves

May 11, 2011 - 2:31 PM (Sports Network) - Jayson Werth signed a contract large enough to feed a small country this offseason with the Washington Nationals and played a key role in leading his club past the Atlanta Braves in the opener of a three-game series.

Werth and the Nats will get back to work tonight in the second installment of this set with the NL East-rival Braves at Turner Field, where the bearded slugger cracked a three-run homer in a 7-6 win on Tuesday. Werth went deep for the fifth time this season and for the first time since April 26 versus the New York Mets.

Laynce Nix also belted a three-run homer to back 7 1/3 solid innings out of Jason Marquis, who struck out three and permitted three runs on seven hits for his 100th career victory. Sean Burnett, Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen went the rest of the way to preserve the win, with Storen notching his eighth save in Washington's third win in four tries.

"A lot of hard work and good fortune with health has allowed me to do that," Marquis said about reaching 100 wins.

John Lannan is a long way from reaching the century mark in wins (30) and will take the mound Wednesday hoping to snap a three-start losing streak. Lannan lasted just two innings in a 7-3 loss at Philadelphia on Thursday, allowing six runs and seven hits to fall to 2-4 in seven starts.

Lannan's ERA bulged to 5.09 and he will face Atlanta for the second time this season. In a 6-3 win on April 2, Lannan held the Braves to a run in five innings of work. The left-hander is 6-4 with a 3.27 ERA in 11 career starts against the Braves.

Atlanta has dropped two of three games since winning six in a row and got a three-run homer from Dan Uggla during a five-run bottom of the eighth inning. Tim Hudson started for the hosts and was banged around for seven runs, three of which were earned, and five hits in five innings.

Martin Prado also went deep in a losing cause.

"This was an ugly game for us but we still battled back in the late innings," Uggla said. "We let them get too far ahead early on."

The Braves opened an eight-game homestand in losing fashion and hope Tommy Hanson can get them back into the swing of things when he takes the mound Wednesday. Hanson has won three straight and four of five starts, including last Wednesday's 8-3 triumph versus Milwaukee.

Hanson lasted six innings and allowed two runs on three hits to improve to 4-3 in seven starts this season with a 2.63 ERA. The righty lost at Washington on April 2, when he gave up four runs -- three earned -- in only 3 2/3 innings of work. He is 2-2 in seven career starts against the Nationals.

Atlanta won two of three matchups with Washington from March 31-April 3 this season in the nation's capital, but the Nats are 7-4 in the past 11 meetings between the two NL East inhabitants.






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