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STL@ATL: Delgado strikes out five over five innings

The Braves welcomed back Chipper Jones on Tuesday night, and with his return, they hope more winning will come. The club snapped its four-game losing streak to begin 2012 and looks to capture the series from the Astros before heading back to Atlanta for Friday's home opener.

Aiming to guide the Braves to a positive ending on their six-game season-opening road trip will be Randall Delgado. The young right-hander broke camp in the rotation with just seven Major League starts under his belt. Delgado, 22, went 1-1 with a 2.83 ERA in seven starts last season, and could be in position to provide some spark from the mound -- something Jones said would be quite beneficial to the club.

"It seems like when the ball is rolling down the hill, it's hard to stop," Jones said. "But it's just going to take somebody throwing a great game on the mound or getting a big base hit late in the game to propel us to victory, and then hopefully we'll start rolling after that."

Yet, regardless of Wednesday's outcome, Jones said it is too early to worry about the Braves' spot in the National League East standings, even though prognostications have called for a very competitive race.

"It's way too early to be looking at the standings," Jones said. "The only number we should be looking at is ... in the win column and doing whatever we can and whatever it takes. ... It's kind of like that feel we had last September where we were playing good baseball and then we'd have that one bad inning and it would kill us. This team isn't going anywhere unless we get over that right now. "

The Astros will counter with Wandy Rodriguez, hoping that the left-hander can get the rotation back on track. Houston starters strung together four consecutive quality starts to begin the season before Kyle Weiland surrendered four earned runs over five innings on Tuesday.

Rodriguez looks to follow up on a strong season debut. He allowed three unearned runs over six innings in a no-decision against the Rockies. Against Atlanta, Rodriguez can rely on a strong history. The left-hander owns a 3-2 record and 3.25 career ERA in 11 appearances (10 starts) and 57 strikeouts in 61 innings versus the Braves.

Braves: Chipper's big return
Jones made his season debut on Tuesday and helped guide the Braves to their first victory of the season. Jones, who underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on March 26, went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs. His bat could provide a significant boost to a lineup that scored just 10 runs in the four games before his return. Jones comes off limited action during Spring Training, when he hit just .200 (5-for-25) in 10 Grapefruit League games.

Astros: More home cooking for Wandy
If it was up to Rodriguez, he may be OK with never pitching outside of Minute Maid Park. The left-hander's home success goes back to his first home start in 2005. Rodriguez owns a 42-30 record and 3.40 career ERA in 103 games (101 starts) in Minute Maid Park. Away from home, Rodriguez owns a 31-45 record and 4.76 ERA.

• Jose Altuve has shown few issues transitioning to a full-time role. After a positive 26 games with the Astros in 2011, the shortstop is off to a .357 (5-for-14) start with one RBI, three walks and four runs scored.

Worth noting
• With a win on Tuesday, the Braves avoided their worst start since 1988, when they opened the year 0-10.

• Outfielder Justin Maxwell, claimed off waivers from the Yankees on Sunday, homered in his first at-bat as an Astro on Monday night. He was the first Houston player to homer in his first at-bat with the club since lefty reliever Gustavo Chacin homered on May 21, 2010.

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