Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Dan Uggla drove in two runs during a decisive four-run fifth inning that boosted the Atlanta Braves to a 6-2 win over the Washington Nationals in the second test of a three-game set Saturday at Nationals Park.
Atlanta starter Julio Teheran (1-1) struck out six over seven strong innings and limited the Nationals to just two runs on three hits and four walks to pick up the win.
Ian Thomas spun a scoreless eighth and Jordan Walden stranded runners on first and second in the ninth to close out Atlanta's fourth straight victory.
Teheran also added two hits and an RBI at the plate, while Ryan Doumit and Andrelton Simmons supplied an RBI apiece in the win.
"That's our goal, to win every series. We've put ourselves in a position to sweep now," Uggla said.
Stephen Strasburg (0-1) was knocked around for six runs -- three earned -- on eight hits and three walks over 4 1/3 frames to absorb the loss.
"I just left some pitches up," Strasburg said.
Adam LaRoche launched a two-run homer for the Nationals, who have lost two straight since opening the season with a three-game sweep of the Mets.
LaRoche's two-out blast in the first gave the Nats a 2-0 edge, but the Braves battled back with two in the fourth to tie the game before breaking through for four in the fifth to seize control.
In the fourth, Justin Upton smacked a leadoff single and stole second two batters later before Simmons slapped a grounder to third baseman Ryan Zimmerman with two outs.
Zimmerman smothered the groundball, but misfired on his throw to first, allowing Upton to score while Simmons raced around to second.
Teheran then helped his own cause with a hump-back liner to shallow right field that scored Simmons to tie the game at 2-2.
The Braves broke things open in the fifth, as Freddie Freeman worked a one-out walk before Chris Johnson and Upton stroked consecutive singles.
With the bases loaded, Uggla laced a curveball past a diving Zimmerman at third to score Freeman and Johnson for a 4-2 lead.
Uggla and Upton both moved up a base on Bryce Harper's throwing error before Doumit followed with a single to right to plate Upton for a 5-2 lead.
Aaron Barrett then replaced Strasburg and served up a sacrifice fly to Simmons that gave Atlanta a 6-2 lead.
Washington put its first two hitters on in the home half of the fifth, but Denard Span grounded into a fielder's choice to leave runners on the corners for Harper, who smacked a liner to center field.
B.J. Upton got his body behind the ball and made the catch before firing a one-hop strike to the plate to nab Jose Lobaton tagging from third for an inning-ending double play.
The Nats again put runners on first and second with no outs in the sixth, but Teheran retired the final six hitters he faced in order to maintain Atlanta's lead.
Game Notes
Atlanta went 5-for-16 with runners in scoring position and left 12 men on base ... Washington finished 1-for-9 with RISP and left eight runners on base ... Thomas recorded the first two strikeouts of his major league career ... Zimmerman was charged with his second error of the season ... Teheran registered his third career RBI.
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