A showdown between National League East rivals pitting a division leader against one of baseball’s biggest surprises this season begins on Thursday night at 7:15 p.m. ET, when the Braves host the Nationals in the opener of a four-game series at Truist Park.
And when Atlanta and Washington meet with the Braves eyeing a deep October run and the Nats seeking their first winning season since 2019, it will be televised exclusively on ESPN.
The Nationals have been one of the more surprising stories around the Majors this year -- Washington leads MLB with 596 runs scored and 159 home runs as we approach August. At 55-54, the Nats are aiming for their first winning season since capturing the first World Series title in franchise history seven years ago.
Led by slugging outfielder and NL MVP candidate James Wood along with fellow All-Star CJ Abrams, the Nationals have produced a fearsome lineup that features three players with at least 22 homers this season. Wood is third in the NL with 30 home runs and Abrams leads the Majors with 82 RBIs and ranks fifth in the NL with 27 homers.
The Braves, meanwhile, have bounced back from an uncharacteristic fourth-place finish in the division last year and are comfortably perched atop the NL East with a 6 1/2-game lead over the Phillies.
Atlanta has navigated another injury-plagued season -- losing starters Spencer Strider and Spencer Schwellenbach early in the campaign and being without superstar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. due to a left hamstring strain -- and heads into the stretch run in great shape in the standings.
Acuña provided an immediate spark for the Braves’ lineup when he returned from the injured list earlier this week, and alongside All-Stars Matt Olson, Drake Baldwin and Ozzie Albies, he will look to help Atlanta surge into October with designs on winning its second World Series championship this decade.
The Braves and Nats have met seven times so far this season, with Atlanta taking three of four in Washington from April 20-23, and Washington winning two of three in Atlanta from May 22-24.
The Braves are scheduled to send right-hander Grant Holmes to the mound opposite Nationals righty Jake Irvin in the series opener on Thursday. With Washington just two games out of the third NL Wild Card spot and Atlanta looking to pad its division lead, this promises to be a hard-fought four-game set at Truist Park.