The Washington Nationals send John Patterson to the mound against A.J. Burnett and the Marlins to try to stop their five game skid. At the beginning of the week, they were tied with the Braves for first in the NL East. Now, they're not even leading the wild card as they sit one game behind Houston. Burnett's improved with each start since returning from the DL, going seven strong innings vs. the Giants his last time out. Patterson has allowed no more than two runs in each of his last six starts, yet his record over that time is 1-0. The Nationals are only 2-4 in those games, wasting four good outings that should have them tied for first in the division.

Barry Zito tries to keep his winning streak going today as the Athletics host the Tigers and Nate Robertson. Through June 17th, Zito was 3-8 with a 4.66 ERA. Since then, he's won six in a row with a 1.61 ERA. He's not striking out as many batters, but he's giving up many fewer hits. You don't see that too often. Robertson and Zito have each been effective with men in scoring position this year. Zito ranks third in the AL with a .196 BA allowed, while Robertson is 6th at with a .214 BA allowed.

Enjoy!

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