Smith-Shawver shines once again with 6 strong innings as Braves beat

ATLANTA (AP)– AJ Smith-Shawver enabled just two hits and no earned runs in 6 strong innings, Nick Allen drove in a run with 2 hits and the Atlanta Braves beat the Washington Nationals 5-2 on Thursday.The Braves won

3 of 4 games in the series, leaving the Nationals with 8 losses in their last nine games. Washington snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 5-4 resurgence win on Wednesday night.Advertisement Smith-Shawver(3-2)counted on

his splitter for 6 strikeouts and gave up one unearned run. He has won his last three decisions.C.J. Abrams had 2 hits, including a homer off left-hander Dylan Lee in the eighth, for Washington.Smith-Shawver, 22, has actually emerged as a trusted right-hander following his recall from Triple-A Gwinnett on April 29. He took a no-hitter into the 8th inning of a 4-0 win over Cincinnati on May 5. Trevor Williams (2-5 )quit four runs, 3 earned, in 4 1/3 innings.Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth for his seventh save, a day after suffering his third blown save.Key moment Advertisement Ozzie Albies was struck by a pitch from Williams to open the 5th, setting up a three-run inning that offered Atlanta a 4-0 lead. Alex Verdugo and

Drake Baldwin had run-scoring songs and Marcell Ozuna included a sacrifice fly in the inning.Key stat Smith-Shawver has allowed one made run in 19 2/3 innings over his last three starts, leaving his period at 2.33. Up next Washington opens a three-game series at Baltimore on Friday night

with LHP MacKenzie Gore(2-4, 3.59 PERIOD )scheduled to start for the Nationals. The Braves also will open an interleague series on the roadway when they

play at Boston with LHP Chris Sale( 1-3, 3.97), who pitched for the Red Sox from 2017 through 2023, scheduled to face LHP Garrett Crochet( 4-2, 1.93). ___ AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb