There’s no crying in baseball, but perhaps we can make an excuse for Atlanta Braves fans, who will have to endure a painful rebuild phase for their team. That said, the Braves can cheer up their supporters by beating the Washington Nationals later tonight. Over in the NBA, the Dallas Mavericks and the Utah Jazz square off in a tasty matchup that carries significant playoff implications.
The Braves and the Nationals meet again for the start of a four-game series in Washington later tonight. Atlanta will have Bud Norris on the mound and the right-handed pitcher will look to keep his record flawless in Nationals Park, where he’s gone 2-0 with a rather unspectacular 4.43 ERA in three starts there in the past.
The Nationals, meanwhile, will send Gio Gonzalez to the mound. Gonzalez was potent versus Atlanta last season. He had a 2-0 record and a 1.38 ERA in two starts versus the Braves in 2015.
The Jazz play their last home game of the season later tonight, when they welcome Dirk Nowitzki and company in Salt Lake City. In the two teams’ most recent meeting, Utah defeated the Mavs, 121-119 in overtime on February 9, with Rodney Hood leading Utah with 29 points. The Mavericks, meanwhile, beat Utah on November 20, 102-93, behind former Jazz Deron Williams’ 23 points. Williams is out with a sports hernia, but Dallas will still have Nowitzki, who leads the team this season with 18.3 points per game.
Dallas is 3-1 ATS in its last four games in Utah. The Jazz are 6-2 ATS in their last eight at home.
