NL East-leading Braves send Kawakami to hill in Florida

Baseball Betting Lines

09/03/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kenshin Kawakami returns to the Atlanta Braves this evening, as they try to hold onto their dwindling advantage in the National League East in the opener of a three-game set against the Florida Marlins at Sun Life Stadium.

Kawakami, who will be filling in for the injured Derek Lowe, has not pitched in the majors since a relief appearance back on July 16, but was 1-9 in 15 starts. Lowe has been battling elbow pain and received a cortisone shot last weekend.

"I didn't think I was going to miss a start," said Lowe, who should resume pitching in a few days. "So I can't say it's going to feel better in three days, a week or whenever. It's unfortunate. It's [my] turn to pitch, and I've never missed [a start]. But you've got to be honest with yourself and true to your team."

Kawakami, who has pitched to a 4.75 earned run average in his 16 big league appearances this season, had been 0-1 with a 4.29 earned run average in five starts for Triple-A Gwinnett.

The Japanese right-hander lost to the Marlins earlier in the year and is just 1-4 lifetime against them with a 5.55 ERA in five games, four of which have been starts.

Atlanta was denied a sweep in its four-game set with the New York Mets on Thursday, as it dropped a 4-2 decision in the finale on Thursday at Turner Field. Brian McCann went 3-for-4 with a solo home run while Martin Prado drove in the other run for the Braves, who had a five-game winning streak stopped.

Tim Hudson (15-6), who was named the National League Pitcher of the Month earlier in the day on Thursday, had a six-game winning streak halted as he was charged with four runs -- three earned -- on eight hits with a walk and four strikeouts over seven innings.

The loss shortened Atlanta's lead in the NL East to two games over Philadelphia, which held off Colorado on Thursday for a 12-11 win.

"It's tight out there," said Hudson about the playoff race. "We knew that the Phillies weren't going to go away. We just gotta go out there and keep playing and just keep doing what we do."

Florida, meanwhile, will need a strong showing this weekend if it wants to keep its fleeting postseason hopes alive. The Marlins enter the weekend set 10 games back of the Braves in the division and eight behind the wild card- leading Phillies.

The Marlins rolled to a 16-10 win against Washington on Wednesday, but the game will likely be remembered for a wild brawl that took place in the sixth inning when Nationals center fielder Nyjer Morgan charged the mound and punched Marlins pitcher Chris Volstad.

Both players were ejected.

Florida was ahead 15-5 with one out in the inning when Volstad threw a pitch behind Morgan, who was hit on the right side by an offering in the fourth frame. The Marlins were ahead 14-3 in the fourth, but Morgan stole second and third base during the inning.

In the sixth, though, Morgan became upset and immediately threw down his bat and charged the mound. Volstad tossed down his glove and Morgan connected with a left to the pitcher's neck.

Marlins first baseman Gaby Sanchez then raced in and delivered a clothes-line hit to Morgan, who immediately tumbled to the ground. Players for both teams scuffled near the mound and then Pat Listach, the third base coach for the Nationals, joined the fray by piling on Volstad and possibly throwing a punch.

"Obviously, he's not coming out there to talk," Volstad said. "I had to defend myself and not to get hurt."

Suspensions and fines should be handed out on Friday.

"I've been part of a few bench-clearings, and this one was pretty up there as far as the amount of intensity and physical actions on the field," Helms said. "It's going to happen. It's part of the game. It's not a bad thing, it's just going to happen, it doesn't happen often. Tonight was one of those nights where it got out of hand."

Heading to the hill for the Marlins this evening will be left-hander Andrew Miller, who has yet to record a decision in three appearances (one start) this season, but has pitched to a 4.50 ERA. Miller last pitched out of the bullpen on Monday against Washington and yielded a run in one inning of work.

Miller has faced the Braves six times (three starts) and is 2-0 against them with a 3.32 ERA.

On the injury front, the Marlins could get second baseman Dan Uggla back this weekend. Uggla, who has been hampered by a groin strain, is one home run shy of 30, which would make him the first second baseman in Major League history to reach the mark four seasons in a row.

He is 4-for-9 lifetime against Kawakami with a home run and three walks.

Atlanta has won seven of its 12 matchups with the Marlins this season.

Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds

Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it. Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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