Atlanta (45-50) entered the break 6 1/2 games behind first-place Philadelphia in the East, marking just the third time in the last 18 seasons it has reached the All-Star break below .500.

A struggling lineup is largely to blame.

Despite boasting All-Stars Chipper Jones and Brian McCann, Atlanta scored a major league-worst 52 runs from June 23-July 12. The Braves went 6-11 over that stretch, but did win their final contest before the break 12-3, routing San Diego on Sunday behind a homer and three RBIs from McCann. The catcher, who walked and got hit by a pitch in addition to going 3-for-3, has reached base in eight straight plate appearances.

"It's good to be locked in. You try to stay locked in as long as you can, because you know that at some point, you're gonna come out of it," said McCann, who leads all major league catchers with 18 home runs and 27 doubles. "Baseball's up and down. I was down for about two or three weeks where I wasn't hitting anything. That's just baseball."

Washington (36-60), meanwhile, has scored 350 runs, tied with San Diego for the fewest in the major leagues entering the break. However, the Nationals have managed to outplay the Braves in their meetings.

Atlanta has lost five of its eight games versus Washington this season, and has scored a total of five runs en route to losing the last three meetings. The Braves are in danger of losing four straight in a single season to Washington for the first time since 1992, when the Nationals franchise was based in Montreal.

Jair Jurrjens (9-4, 3.00 ERA), who is 3-1 with a 1.30 ERA in his last five starts, gets the ball for Atlanta. The 22-year-old right-hander has not pitched since July 8, when he gave up one run in six innings of a 9-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-3.

Jurrjens pitched well but did not receive a decision in his first career start against the Nationals, allowing one run and two hits in seven innings of a 3-2 Braves loss on April 30.

Washington counters with its winningest pitcher. Tim Redding (7-3, 3.85 ERA) has given up two runs or fewer in four of his last six outings.

The right-hander, though, had failed to record a decision in nine straight outings prior to last Friday, when he allowed seven hits in six innings of Washington's 10-0 win over Houston 10-0 on Friday night.

Redding is 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA in two starts versus the Braves this season, but Jones is 7-for-9 (.778) against him lifetime with two home runs.

Washington, which has the majors' worst record, lost 5-0 to Houston on Sunday. The Nationals, who have been shut out a major league-high 12 times, have lost 10 of their last 13 games.

"We need a few more guys to step it up," manager Manny Acta said. "Right now, we're battling on almost every at-bat."