One day after Julio Teheran's near no-hitter, the Atlanta Braves try to push their winning streak to six straight contests as they begin a four-game series against the hosting Los Angeles Dodgers.
Teheran took a no-hitter into the eighth inning of Wednesday's finale with the Pittsburgh Pirates before yielding a two-out single to a pinch-hitting Brandon Inge. It was the only hit of the game for the Pirates as the Braves notched a 5-0 win.
Teheran struck out a career-high 11 batters and also walked two while throwing 79 of his 107 pitches over eight innings for strikes.
"I felt good today from the first inning. I had good communication with (catcher Gerald) Laird and we mixed all the pitches well," Teheran said. "I was using more of my slider. I've been throwing my two-seamer a lot, but I didn't use it much today. I just kept them off balance."
Evan Gattis and Laird hit back-to-back solo homers in the sixth inning for the Braves, who concluded their homestand with a 6-2 record following the three- game sweep of the Pirates.
While Teheran nearly pitched himself into the history books, the Dodgers saw their offense struggle in Wednesday's 6-2 loss to the San Diego Padres.
Padres starter Jason Marquis did not allow a hit until the sixth inning and the Dodgers were limited to just five hits while being denied a three-game sweep. Scott Van Slyke hit a solo homer and Adrian Gonzalez drove in a run in defeat.
Los Angeles starter Clayton Kershaw gave up three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits while striking out nine over six innings. The left-hander had pitched seven or more innings in each of his previous seven starts.
"These guys battled him," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "They're the team that gives him trouble. They seem to run him through pitches."
A lot of teams have been giving Zack Greinke trouble as of late and he makes his fifth start tonight for the Dodgers since returning from a broken collarbone, an injury he suffered during a benches-clearing brawl versus San Diego on April 11. The right-hander returned to action just over a month later, much earlier than anticipated, but has not logged more than 5 1/3 innings of work in the four starts.
Greinke did not factor into a 7-6 loss at Colorado on Saturday, charged with four runs on nine hits and three walks over 5 1/3 innings.
"I knew I made some mistakes," Greinke said. "I was expecting to do better in these first couple of outings than I have. I better make adjustments and pitch better from here on out."
The 29-year-old is 2-1 with a 4.80 earned run average in six starts this season and 0-1 lifetime versus the Braves with a 5.73 ERA in two meetings.
Tim Hudson aims to win for the first time in six starts on Thursday night when he takes the hill for the Braves.
Hudson is 0-3 over his winless stretch with a 6.33 ERA. He has allowed 17 runs in the three losses, but just two earned in the pair of no-decisions.
The right-hander was charged with only one unearned run over 7 1/3 innings on Saturday versus the Washington Nationals. Hudson did not factor into a 2-1 win after scattering three hits and a walk while striking out four in matching his longest start of the season.
Hudson found himself 4-4 with a 4.80 ERA through 12 starts this season following that home outing, but is just 1-4 with a 4.67 ERA in six road outings over that time.
The 37-year-old is 6-3 with a 3.67 ERA in 13 lifetime starts versus the Dodgers.
The Braves swept a three-game set at home versus the Dodgers from May 17-19.
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