Washington at Atlanta

First place Washington is a dog, but off a 4-1 win here yesterday. The Nationals are 5-2 against a team with a winning record. They have a fine starter going in Gio Gonzalez with opponents hitting .237 off him, and he faces a bad Atlanta offense ranked 28th in runs and 26th in slugging. By contrast, Washington is 11th in baseball in runs scored. The Nationals are 9-3 against a left-handed starter and 6-0 in their last six Sunday get-away games. They face a struggling Atlanta team on a 1-9 run and 1-7 in their last eight games following a loss. Atlanta is 1-8 against a team with a winning record, and starter Alex Wood is no stopper with the team 1-8 when he gets four days of rest. The wrong team is favored. Play Washington.