Braves face real test in first-place Mets

PHILADELPHIA -- While winning four of their first five games of this current road trip, the Braves have proven that they could turn things around once Brian McCann and Garret Anderson returned to their lineup. But to truly make this eight-game trip memorable, they're going to have to continue their current success through their first trip to Citi Field.

With their recent success, the Braves enter this week's three-game series against the Mets with just a 2 1/2-game deficit in the National League East standings.

"We finally got our lineup together, and now we're capable of hitting the ball out of the ballpark and driving in runs," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "It's not going to happen every game. But we've got a good chance to score runs now."

Runs could be at a premium during this series opener, which will pit Derek Lowe against Johan Santana.

Lowe, who opted to sign with the Braves instead of the Mets in the offseason, is looking forward to his first opportunity to match up against the two-time Cy Young Award winner, who has gone 0-3 with a 2.76 ERA in five career starts against Atlanta.

"You don't have a lot of room for error when you're going up against guys like this," said Lowe, whose Ft. Myers, Fla., residence is just two doors down from the one Santana purchased during his days with the Twins.

The Braves might also be without Chipper Jones, who exited Sunday afternoon's game against the Phillies with a sore right elbow. This isn't exactly good news to those rabid Mets fans, who were likely looking forward to welcoming him to Citi Field with some of those same "Lah-REE" chants that he heard for so many years at Shea Stadium.

Jones, who said there's a 50 percent chance that he'll play on Monday, is hoping that the new park provides the same kind of hostile character that was present in Shea. But he remembers the atmosphere changing in Atlanta in 1997, when the Braves moved into Turner Field.

"I'm wondering how the atmosphere is going to be," said Jones, who hit .313 in 88 career games at Shea Stadium. "The atmosphere from Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium to Turner Field is different. I'm anxious to see how that kind of carries over to this new park."

Entering this series with the desire to prolong their recent success, the Braves are also looking to avenge the two-game series sweep the Mets claimed in Atlanta last week.

With McCann and Anderson now healthy and productive, the Braves' lineup is starting to take shape. Their presence has seemingly already aided Casey Kotchman, who has totaled eight of his 12 RBIs during the past four games.

With three hits in five career at-bats against Santana, Kotchman may have a chance to continue his recent success and give the Braves even more reason to enjoy their first trip to the Mets' new home.

"I liked Shea, but if there was ever a time for a new stadium, it was time," Cox said.