1:05 p.m. Washington Nationals (55-46, R. Drese) at Atlanta Braves (57-44, J. Sosa) Best Line: Atlanta Braves -172 Looking at the schedule in the beginning of the season who could have thought that the winner of this series would be in first place in the NL East? After last night’s 4-3 win against the pesky Nationals, Atlanta leads the NL East by a slim two game margin over Washington. The Nationals had a five and a half game lead in the NL East but have dropped eight consecutive one run games. In the final game of their three game series, Washington looks to avoid a sweep in Fulton County as they meet the Braves this afternoon at 1:05 pm. The Braves have the leagues second best home record at 31-14 and hope Jorge Sosa (5-1, 2.55) will continue to bedazzle on the mound. He is starting in place of Mike Hampton who is on the 15-day DL with a back injury. Sosa coming out of the bullpen has been a savior for Bobby Cox’s team who have won seven of Sosa’s last eight starts. Starting Atlanta catcher, Johnny Estrada, is out today as he completes the second of his two game suspension for an altercation with an umpire. The Nationals look to get within a game of first place with Ryan Drese (7-9, 5.56 ERA) tossing the hardball. Drese has pitched well at times this year, but he is awful on the road. This year his record is 3-6 on the road with a 7.71 ERA. In his last outing against the Astros he took the loss against Roger Clemens and gave up two runs in the first inning of the Nationals 14-1 loss. Drese’s road woes look to continue this afternoon against the Braves. PICK! Atlanta Braves -172