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Angels hope to break out of slump against Braves

May 20, 2011 - 2:52 PM (Sports Network) - The slumping LA Angels of Anaheim hope to feast on some National League pitching when they kick off interleague play tonight in the opener of a three-game series versus the Atlanta Braves from the Big A.

The Angels enter this series having lost five straight and seven of eight games, and haven't faced the Braves since losing two of three matchups at home from June 13-15, 2008. The Halos took two of three at Turner Field during the 2005 campaign and are 138-109 against the National League. Anaheim has won 25 of its last 36 interleague games and was 11-7 against the NL last year. It is 119-78 in interleague play since the 2000 season.

Atlanta is 119-107 against the American League.

Anaheim was swept in back-to-back two-game sets at Oakland and Seattle, and will begin a seven-game homestand Friday night versus the Braves and Oakland Athletics. In a 2-1 loss against the Mariners on Thursday, Carlos Peguero hit the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the ninth off of Angels reliever Scott Downs. Dan Haren started the game and was brilliant with eight innings of one-run ball and five strikeouts.

"It feels like we've lost 20 in a row, but really we're a game or two out of first place," said Haren. "We're lucky that no one has pulled away and we play every team 15 more times, still a long, long ways to go. We'll turn things around, we're too good of a ballclub to not, we just got to keep pitching like we're pitching and the offense will come around."

Howie Kendrick highlighted the Halos offense with three hits, including a solo home run in the fourth inning.

Ervin Santana will handle pitching duties this evening for Anaheim and is a disappointing 1-4 with a 4.85 ERA in nine starts. Santana is coming off Sunday's no-decision at Texas in which he was reached for four runs and eight hits through seven innings of a 5-4 loss.

Santana, a right-hander, is 0-3 in four home starts this season and lost his only appearance against Atlanta.

The Braves had won four in a row before losing both portions of a two-game set in Arizona to begin a seven-game road trip. They were swept out of the desert with Thursday's 2-1 loss, as Jair Jurrjens suffered his first defeat of the season (5-1) by allowing both runs and eight hits in 6 2/3 frames.

Jurrjens struck out three and walked one batter, and was trying to become the National League's first six-game winner.

"J.J. pitched good enough to deserve to win the ballgame," said Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez. "Our bats didn't come alive until those last two innings. That's just the way it goes sometimes."

Freddie Freeman had three hits and Brian McCann scored in the top of the ninth on a fielding error.

Atlanta, which will also visit Pittsburgh for two games, will hand the ball to Tim Hudson this evening and he's 4-3 with a 3.03 ERA in nine starts. Hudson is 0-1 in the past two trips to the hill and did not record a decision in Sunday's 3-2 win over Philadelphia, as he limited the NL East-rival Phillies to a pair of runs over seven innings.

Hudson, a right-hander, is 13-6 with a 3.49 ERA in 24 career starts against the Angels. He spent several years in the AL West with the Oakland Athletics.