The Washington Nationals have an opportunity to become the first team to clinch a road series this season against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon in the finale of the three-game set.

Washington evened the weekend series on Saturday in an atypical way for the upstart club. The Nationals, who lead baseball in scoring (286 runs) but also own the second-worst ERA in the National League (4.87), allowed just one hit in a 2-0 win over Atlanta 2-0.

As Washington looks to climb back to .500, taking two of three from the Braves will be no easy task.

Left-hander Foster Griffin (5-2, 4.02 ERA) will be eager to turn around a rough pair of starts for Washington. After yielding just one earned run across 20 innings in three previous starts, Griffin has allowed 14 earned runs in his last two outings.

Despite giving up five runs in five innings to the New York Mets on Tuesday, Griffin earned the win as the Nationals posted a 9-6 victory.

“I talked to him for a while after the start and just kept telling him how great of a job he did,” Washington manager Blake Butera said of Griffin’s last appearance. “Obviously he would’ve liked to have less runs up on the board, but he grinded through that one. The fact that he was able to get us through five and keep it where it was, that was huge.”

Griffin, a former first-round pick in 2014 by the Kansas City Royals, signed a one-year, $5.5 million deal with Washington in December after spending the last three years playing in Japan. He had seven career games with the Royals and Toronto Blue Jays in 2020 and 2022.

Griffin faced Atlanta for the first time on April 21, tossing six innings of three-run, five-hit ball in an 11-4 win.

The Braves suffered just their fourth shutout of the year on Saturday, but their third in the last 10 games. Atlanta’s pitching staff, however, has remained a constant. The Braves lead the majors with a 3.06 mark.

Veteran Martin Perez (2-2, 2.85 ERA) will make his 11th appearance (seventh start) of the season for Atlanta in the series finale. Perez, 35, tossed five innings in a no-decision against the Miami Marlins on Tuesday, allowing four runs on five hits, while striking out a career-high 10 batters. The Braves won 8-4.

Perez, a starter for most of his 15-year major league career, has filled in any role the team has asked of him.

“He’s been a great pro,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “I told him that he’s got a punch card from my office, because I’m always calling him in and telling him we’re changing roles with him. Going to and from the bullpen, into the rotation, sometimes late notice based on our needs. He’s done it with a smile and has been really valuable for us. What a pro.”

Perez is 1-2 with a 6.20 ERA in six career appearances (four starts) against the Nationals.

-Field Level Media

Legacy recorded a 3-1 victory over Team Falcons in the grand final of the CS Asia Championships in Shanghai on Sunday.

Team Falcons started fast with a 13-11 win on Nuke before Legacy took control of the best-of-five contest. Legacy notched a 13-9 triumph on Ancient, 13-5 victory on Mirage and 13-6 win on Dust II to take home the grand prize of $150,000.

Also on Sunday, MOUZ coasted to a 2-0 win over MIBR following a 13-3 victory on Overpass and 13-1 triumph on Ancient. With the victory, MOUZ finished third.

Sixteen teams began the $400,000 Counter-Strike 2 event on Wednesday.

CS Asia Championship prize pool:

1. $150,000 — Legacy

2. $70,000 — Team Falcons

3. $60,000 — MOUZ

4. $40,000 — MIBR

5-6. $20,000 — B8, The MongolZ

7-8. $10,000 — paiN Gaming, PARIVISION

9-12. $4,000 — TYLOO, M80, Lynn Vision Gaming, Team Liquid

13-16. $1,000 — BC.Game Esports, NRG, Ninjas in Pyjamas, 3DMAX

–Field Level Media

Tiger Woods’ $50 million private plane returned to Switzerland on Sunday, with the injured golfer presumably in line to resume his rehabilitation process.

Per Celebplanes.com, the Gulfstream V took off Saturday night from Stuart, Fla., and flew just under nine hours to Zurich.

The New York Post published photos on May 14 of Woods getting off of a private plane at Palm Beach International Airport, about 45 miles from his home on Jupiter Island, Fla. Woods reportedly had been in rehab in Switzerland, going there soon after being charged with misdemeanor DUI following a rollover crash close to home on March 27.

On April 1, Martin County Court (Fla.) Judge Darren Steele granted the motion to travel submitted by Woods’ attorney, Douglas Duncan, who cited the 50-year-old golf superstar’s need for an “intensive, highly individualized and medically integrated program” away from media and public scrutiny.

Woods, 50, recently returned to the United States, presumably to be by the side of girlfriend, Vanessa Trump, 48, after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Trump called Woods “her strength” as she deals with her health issue.

Trump, the ex-wife of Donald Trump Jr., announced her diagnosis via social media on Thursday.

“Tiger has been very supportive of Vanessa through all of this and is really just focused on being there for her,” a source told the New York Post. “He’s proud of how positive she’s stayed and how she’s handling everything so far. She’s been so strong and he truly believes she’s going to be OK. He’s just trying to support her however he can right now.”

As for Woods, he reportedly is undergoing “intense” psychological treatment at a rehabilitation center in Switzerland to help manage what has been characterized as his dependency on painkillers.

Following the Florida accident, Woods — who has won 15 majors among his 82 career victories — said he would not play in the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Ga. He also removed his name from consideration to become captain of the United States’ 2027 Ryder Cup team.

–Field Level Media