Fresh off their most important road sweep of the young 2014 season, the Atlanta Braves return home to meet the Seattle Mariners in the first of two interleague games at Turner Field.
Atlanta enters off a three-game sweep at Miami, which had tied them atop the National League East but is now three games behind. The Braves had scored just six times while losing three straight heading into the Marlins series, but rebounded to score 16 runs in three games in Miami.
"We played about as good a series as we've played in a while," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "I'm really, really proud of our ballclub."
Atlanta hasn't faced Seattle since 2011 and hasn't hosted the Mariners at home since 2008.
Veteran right-hander Gavin Floyd makes his fifth start with the Braves since elbow surgery, a stretch that's seen him post a 1.90 earned run average in a pair of home outings.
He was a 4-0 loser at Boston in his last start on Wednesday, though he allowed just one earned run in five innings.
"You just try to keep zeros up and try to keep the team as close as you could," he said. "I want to win. When I'm pitching, I want our team to win. Obviously, I feel fine. I feel good."
The Mariners also enter on a three-game win streak after disposing of the New York Yankees, 10-2, in a Monday makeup game.
Seattle will start recalled minor-leaguer Erasmo Ramirez, who faces the Braves for the first time in his career and starts for the first time since teammate Brandon Maurer was demoted to Triple-A Tacoma.
Ramirez has made six 2014 starts on the major-league level and was beaten, 2-0, in his most recent one on May 7 in Oakland.
In his last 12 innings of work, he's received zero runs in offensive support.
On Monday in New York, Kyle Seager and Michael Saunders had big nights at the plate to help Felix Hernandez win his fifth straight start in the Mariners' shellacking of the struggling Yankees.
Seager went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer, two triples and three runs scored, with Saunders coming through with a solo shot and a two-run single in Seattle's fifth consecutive road win over New York. Two of those victories came around an April 30 rainout that was made up on Monday.
Brad Miller added a two-run single that snapped a 2-2 tie in the seventh inning, while Mike Zunino finished 2-for-4 with an RBI in the rout. Hernandez (8-1) aided the cause by continuing his career-long dominance in the Bronx. The Mariners' ace struck out eight without a walk while allowing just two runs over seven innings, improving to 5-1 with a 1.37 ERA in seven career assignments at the current Yankee Stadium.
On Sunday in Miami, Evan Gattis scorched a tiebreaking two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning and the Braves completed a three-game sweep of the Marlins with a 4-2 win.
Miami closer Steve Cishek (4-2) replaced starter Nathan Eovaldi to start the ninth with the game tied 2-2. Freddie Freeman opened the frame with a single before Gattis jumped on a 2-0 fastball and launched it to center field.
"I got a pitch I could handle," Gattis said of his homer. "If he throws those first two pitches for strikes it might be a different story, but I just got a pitch I could handle."
Shae Simmons, who made his major league debut Saturday, stranded runners on first and second in the ninth to nail down his first big league save.
Alex Wood (5-5) picked up the victory after spinning 1 1/3 perfect innings in relief of starter Aaron Harang, who held the Marlins to two runs on five hits and four walks over 6 2/3 frames.
Jason Heyward and B.J. Upton added an RBI apiece for the Braves.
[SportsNetwork.com]
