Braves at Brewers
29-year-old Anderson (2-0) leads the National League with a 1.13 ERA, allowing only three earned runs in 24 innings through his first four starts.
Anderson seemed bullpen-bound despite going 1-1 with a 2.79 ERA in four spring starts. Those plans changed three days before the season opener when Matt Garza wound up on the disabled list. That opened the door for Anderson, who is 7-1 with a 2.15 ERA over his past 16 starts dating back to last season.
Anderson has faced the Braves twice in his career, winning both times while holding Atlanta to four earned runs in 12 1/3 innings.
He won't be the only Brewers player looking to end the month on a high note.
First baseman Eric Thames already has the franchise record for most home runs in April with 11, and he has three games left to tie Albert Pujols and Alex Rodriguez, who hold the all-time record of 14 set in 2006 and 2007, respectively.
Thames is expected to be back in the lineup Friday despite experiencing left hamstring tightness that forced him from the Thursday game at Cincinnati in the seventh inning. He won't have it easy against the Braves, whose starters have allowed 12 homers this season, the second fewest among NL rotations.
Atlanta right-hander Bartolo Colon (1-2, 4.50 ERA) has allowed three long balls this season. He will look for his second victory of 2017 on Friday while also trying to clean up a few things after giving up 11 hits over seven innings but only allowing four runs in a 4-3 loss to the Phillies on April 21.
Only four batters on Milwaukee's current roster have faced the 43-year-old Colon, who is 4-3 with a 4.33 ERA in nine career starts against the Brewers.
The Braves recovered from a six-game losing skid to take a pair from the New York Mets this week, including a 7-5 victory Thursday.
Reds at Cards
The Cubs often went to victory with Fowler spearheading the charge, including a win in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series in Cleveland as Fowler walloped a leadoff homer.
Now the script is being repeated, only five hours or so south of Chicago. Fowler is going and the St. Louis Cardinals' offense is starting to go.
In a 6-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays that polished off a doubleheader sweep Thursday, Fowler reached base four times. He singled twice, belted a two-out solo homer in the second inning and also drew a walk. Even his out was well-struck, a fly ball to center.
Fowler will try to keep his good work going Friday night when St. Louis starts a weekend series with the Cincinnati Reds in Busch Stadium.
Home has been a nice place for Fowler of late. In a four-game span starting with a 2-1 win over Pittsburgh on April 19 that saw the leadoff man crack two homers, Fowler is 10-of-18 with five extra-base hits. He has scored in five straight home games.
Fowler averaged 4.6 pitches per at-bat in the nightcap Thursday, which included two-pitch plate appearances in the first and eighth. His walk came on the eighth pitch of that plate appearance, and even his out was fairly drawn out, at six pitches.
That version of Fowler could make things tough on a Cincinnati pitching staff that has struggled lately to keep opponents down. The Reds (10-12) have lost five of their last six, including a 9-4 decision Wednesday in Milwaukee.
The Reds will look to Tim Adleman (0-0, 2.70 ERA) to restore some order in the opener. Adleman, who's 1-1 with a 3.75 ERA in two career outings against the Cardinals, was no-decisioned in a 6-5 loss Saturday night to the Chicago Cubs. He struck out seven and allowed two runs in six good innings.
Lance Lynn (2-1, 2.70) will take the mound for St. Louis. He has won his last two starts, including a 4-1 verdict Saturday night in Milwaukee. He is 8-4 against Cincinnati, with a 3.34 ERA in 17 outings (14 starts).
Former Red Mike Leake (3-1, 1.32) matches up with Bronson Arroyo (2-2, 6.86) on Saturday, and rookie left-hander Amir Garrett (2-2, 5.09) meets Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha (2-1, 2.55) in Sunday's series finale.
Garrett posted his first big league win on April 7 in St. Louis, outdueling Leake 2-0 as Cincinnati took two of three that weekend.
Weather could be an issue for this series. There's a 50 percent chance of rain Friday night, a 100 percent chance on Saturday and a 90 percent chance on Sunday.
Twins at Royals
The Royals, who were off Thursday, open a 10-game homestand Friday, with the first three against the Minnesota Twins. They play 16 of their next 20 at Kauffman Stadium.
It is certainly an understatement to say the road has not been kind to the Royals.
The Royals completed a seven-game trip Wednesday to Chicago and Texas without a victory.
The last time they had a winless trip of this length was an 0-9 voyage in 2006, a season they lost 100 games.
The Royals are in last place in the American League Central, having lost 14 of 21 games. If they are to get into postseason contention, they need to turn it around fast.
The Royals' offense has been on the puny side. They have scored two or fewer runs in nine of their past 10 games. The Royals are last in the majors with 54 runs, averaging 2.57 through 21 games.
The Royals began this season with three losses at Minnesota. They were outscored 21-5 at the Target Field games. Last year the Royals dominated the Twins, winning 15 of 19 games, including nine of 10 at The K.
The Twins actually play better on the road. They are 5-7 at home and 5-4 in away games.
The Twins' bullpen imploded in a Wednesday loss to the Rangers. With the scored tied at 2 after five innings and starter Hector Santiago laboring, manager Paul Molitor went to his bullpen. He used six relievers and they combined to give up 12 runs in three innings in a 14-3 loss.
Ian Kennedy will be the Royals' starter for the first game. His 0-2 record belies his 2.08 ERA.
The Royals have supported him with just two runs in his 26 innings on the mound. His 0.69 run-support average is the lowest in the majors for a minimum of four starts.
In his Saturday start at Texas, he allowed one run on four hits and three walks over seven innings in a no-decision. The Royals lost 2-1.
He is 4-2 with a 3.78 ERA in eight career starts against the Twins. He went 3-0 with a 2.86 ERA in five starts vs. Minnesota last season.
The Twins will counter with right-hander Kyle Gibson, who is also looking to pick up his first victory. He is 0-3 with a 9.00 ERA.
He lasted just 2 2/3 innings in his previous start against Detroit, allowing seven runs.
He got a no-decision against the Royals on April 6, holding them to three runs in five innings. He is 5-4 with a 3.70 ERA in a dozen starts against Kansas City. Gibson is a 2009 first-round pick out of Missouri.
It might be a good day for Yost to put backup catcher Drew Butera in the lineup. He is 6-for-8 off Gibson. Starting catcher Salvador Perez has a .148 average (4-for-27) against Gibson.
Mets at Nats
The Mets will need a good showing this weekend in Washington if they don't want to fall further behind the surging Nationals, who posted a record of 9-1 on a three-city road trip that ended Thursday in Denver with a 16-2 thumping of the Colorado Rockies. First-place Washington scored 46 runs while winning three of four in Denver.
Nationals, who swept the Mets in three games last weekend in New York, will send ace Max Scherzer to the mound for the first game of the series Friday night at Nationals Park.
He is 6-3 with a 1.99 ERA in 12 career games against the Mets, with 11 starts. Scherzer (3-1, 1.95) threw a no-hitter at New York in his last start of the 2015 season.
The Mets, who have lost 10 of their last 11 and six in a row, will counter with right-hander Jacob deGrom (0-1, 2.55). He was supposed to start against the Nationals on April 21, but a sore neck forced the Mets to use Matt Harvey, and deGrom faced Washington at home on Saturday.
In his last start, deGrom walked six Nationals but also fanned 10 while giving up three runs at home Saturday. He is 2-3 with a 3.33 ERA in eight career starts against Washington.
The Mets (8-13) are already 7 1/2 games behind the Nationals (16-6), whose bullpen ERA is one of the worst in baseball. New York lost at home 7-5 Thursday to the Atlanta Braves.
New York has been beset by injuries in the first month of the season. Infielder Wilmer Flores (right knee infection) and first baseman Lucas Duda (hyperextended left elbow) both went on the 10-day disabled list April 21.
Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedes did not start in any of the three games last weekend in New York. He started Thursday against the Atlanta Braves but left the game in the fourth inning with a hamstring injury.
Right-hander Noah Syndergaard was scratched from his start on Thursday with a "tired arm," according to Collins.
In the last meeting, Daniel Murphy hit a grand slam and Scherzer got the win against the Mets on Sunday night.
Murphy is hitting .386 with eight homers and 25 RBIs in 22 games against the Mets, his former team.
The Nationals' offense has been the best in baseball, and is paced by right fielder Bryce Harper (.418, eight homers), first baseman Ryan Zimmerman (.387, 8 homers), shortstop Trea Turner (.347), Eaton (.291) and second baseman Murphy (.340, 5 homers).
Washington won the season series 12-7 last season against New York.
New York could also face Stephen Strasburg this weekend after he returned from the paternity list after the birth of his second child earlier this week.
Angels at Rays
Banister shuffled the lineup and Delino Deshields, Shin-Soo Choo and Ryan Rua responded with breakout nights.
Deshields, batting leadoff, reached base five times and scored three runs. Batting ninth for the first time in his career, Choo had a triple and a three-run homer in the same inning. Rua stroked his first career grand slam.
Rua credited Deshields for setting the tone.
After scoring just 20 runs in the previous eight games, the Rangers responded with a season high in hits (14)
The Rangers send Nick Martinez (0-0, 1.29 ERA) to the mound in what likely will be his last spot start for the immediate future. The right-hander was effective in his last outing, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings against Kansas City on April 22.
Martinez is filling in for A.J. Griffin, who is on the disabled list with gout in his ankle. The Rangers should be getting back Sam Dyson, but Banister doesn't plan to use the former closer in any high-leverage situations.
The Angels (12-12) are coming off a 2-1 home win Thursday night over the Oakland A's. Los Angeles has won four straight and five of seven.
The Angels are throwing Tyler Skaggs, who's 1-1 with a 4.44 ERA through four starts. Making his third start on the road, Skaggs earned the win in his last outing on Saturday against Toronto. The lefty worked seven innings and allowed two earned runs on seven hits with two walks and four strikeouts.
Skaggs flew to Texas ahead of the team.
In five career games vs. the Rangers, he is 2-1 with a 6.20 ERA and did not factor in the decision in his start against Texas on April 11. He tossed five innings and allowed five runs on eight hits.
Angels starting pitchers have not allowed more than two earned runs in 12 of the last 13 games, compiling a 2.10 ERA in that span.
Mike Trout is hitting .332 against the Rangers, the second-highest average by an active player with at least 150 plate appearances. Since 2012, Kole Calhoun leads the Angels, batting .323 (40/124) at Globe Life Park.
The Angels dropped two of three against Texas earlier this season in Anaheim.
