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Braves aim for fourth straight win, host Nationals

Jul 19, 2008 - 10:16 AM Washington (36-61) at Atlanta (46-50), 7:00 pm EDT

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- All-Star Brian McCann and the Atlanta Braves seek their fourth consecutive victory Saturday when they host the lowly Washington Nationals.

McCann started the second half on a positive note, delivering a three-run double to lead the Braves to a 7-6 triumph on Friday.

The 24-year-old McCann, who became the first Brave to be named to the National League All-Star team in each of his first three full seasons in the majors, is batting .302 with 18 home runs and 56 RBI.

Washington starter John Lannan (5-9, 3.40 ERA) will try to slow down McCann and the rest of the Braves' up-and-down offense.

Lannan ended a five-game losing streak and picked up his first win since May 18, tossing six innings in a 5-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in his last outing on July 9. The lefthander gave up two hits with three walks and no strikeouts.

The Braves will counter with rookie Jair Jurrjens (9-4, 3.00), who gave up a run and five hits with three walks and six strikeouts over six frames in a 9-3 triumph over the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 8.