ATLANTA -- Nationals manager Dusty Baker liked what he saw in three innings from starter Joe Ross.We were contemplating taking him another inning but said, `Thats enough this first time out, Baker said. Its a welcomed sight to see him back.Ross returned from a 66-game absence with right shoulder inflammation to give Washingtons rotation a boost in a rain-shorted 6-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Sunday.The game was official with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. Two delays totaled 2 hours, 57 minutes.Washington has dropped two straight and needs any combination of six Nationals wins and six New York Mets losses to earn its third NL East title in five years.Adonis Garcia drove in three runs and Matt Wisler pitched five-plus innings for the Braves.Ross (7-5) was on a pitch count as he allowed one run and six hits and struck out five. Baker said the day before that he didnt expect Ross to go longer than three innings.After a 1-hour, 7-minute delay in the top of the sixth, the Braves scored three runs in the bottom of the inning to make it 6-2 on Garcias two-run single and Freddie Freemans RBI double.Wisler (7-12) allowed two runs, five hits and struck out two in 5 2/3 innings. He faced a limited lineup as Baker gave sluggers Daniel Murphy and Anthony Rendon the day off and used Ryan Zimmerman as a pinch-hitter.In his first start since July 2, Ross trailed 1-0 in the second on Jace Petersons RBI single. He gave up three singles to begin the third, but retired the next three batters to escape the jam.Pitched myself into a jam and was able to work out of it in the third, Ross said. Felt good, and thats the main thing I was concerned with today. I could have kept pitching, but probably best to keep it to three innings.Reynaldo Lopez took over in the fourth and trailed 3-0 on Dansby Swansons RBI double and Garcias RBI single.Washington made it 3-2 in the sixth. Trea Turner tripled and Jayson Werth doubled off Wisler. After the first delay ended, Bryce Harpers single off Ian Krol scored Werth.Wisler is 3-3 with a 4.83 in five career starts and one relief appearance against Washington.The Nationals went 15-4 against Atlanta this season and 36-13 in the series since June 21, 2014. They played their last game at Turner Field with the NL-worst Braves moving to a new ballpark next year.Weve struggled against these guys for a couple of years now, Wisler said. To win a series is good for us. If we take that into New York, maybe we can take a series again there.STILL STREAKINGIn 13 games against Atlanta, Turner hit .475 with five doubles, two triples, six homers, 16 RBI, seven stolen bases and 20 runs scored. ... Freeman went 2 for 3 and has a 22-game hitting streak and has reached safely in 38 straight games. Both are career highs and rank first in the majors among active streaks. ... Braves CF Ender Inciarte went 1 for 3 and leads the majors with 88 hits since the All-Star break.SWOON STOPSHarper ended a stretch of 26 plate appearances without a hit, though he did have nine walks over the span. He had two hits in 29 at-bats over his previous 10 games.UP NEXTWashington RHP A.J. Cole (1-2) is scheduled to make his sixth start and first in his career against Miami. Braves RHP Aaron Blair (0-6) is set to start at New York. The rookie has an 8.23 ERA in 12 starts and is 0-2 with an 8.04 ERA in three starts against the Mets. Jujhar Khaira Oilers Jersey .C. -- After a listless first half, the Washington Wizards used a big third quarter run to beat the Charlotte Bobcats Bradley Beal scored 21 points and the Wizards used a 17-0 run in the third quarter to take control of what had been a close game and beat the Bobcats 97-83 on Tuesday night. Kris Russell Oilers Jersey . Tracey comes to the Blue Bombers after spending over a decade with Queens University. Most recently he was the schools assistant football coach. http://www.hockeyoilersshop.com/ryan-nugent-hopkins-jersey/ . The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. Bill Ranford Jersey . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. Oscar Klefbom Jersey . After Gasquet beat fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia 7-5, 6-3, Tsonga followed up with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-2 win against sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin in an all-French match. When Mike DAntoni took over the Phoenix Suns in 2003 and started incorporating his plan to blow the doors off of the rest of the NBA, the coach remembers looking at the stat sheet almost sheepishly when he saw how many 3-pointers they were taking.Wed put up 25 and get scared, like `Oh my gosh, maybe were doing too much, DAntoni recalled this week.If he only knew then the revolution that he started.In his first season in Houston, DAntoni has found the perfect marriage between a coachs approach and an organizational philosophy. And the Rockets are soaring because of it. They set NBA records with 24 made 3s and a staggering 61 attempts in a win over New Orleans on Friday night, then put up the second-most 3s in league history with 51 in a comeback win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.The Rockets have won 10 straight games to improve to 21-7, and DAntoni isnt about to put any limits on how many 3s his team will hoist.Thats the good thing about being in Houston. They kind of like that. Mathematics have said its OK, DAntoni said. So were just kind of pushing the envelope as far as we can go. And I dont know where that will end, but 61 is a good start.There is no bigger envelope pusher in the league than Rockets GM Daryl Morey, who took heat for hiring DAntoni with owner Leslie Alexanders blessing because many thought the Rockets needed a defensive mind after last seasons train wreck on that end of the floor.But the Rockets are a respectable 14th in defensive rating and make up for any shortcomings there by embracing modern analytics that put a premium on 3s, layups and free throws.James Harden is an MVP candidate again, Eric Gordon is enjoying a rebirth in his first year in Houston and Ryan Anderson is letting it fly. The Rockets lead the NBA with 417 3s attempted -- 81 more than the splash family in Golden State -- and are fourth in 3-point accuracy.The efficacy of the approach was readily apparent inn Minnesota on Saturday, when the Rockets hit five 3s in the final three minutes to erase a 12-point deficit and force overtime.ddddddddddddI dont ever see us out of a game, Harden said. We score the ball so easily, so well.---CHRISTMAS DAYThe NBA has taken over Christmas Day, owning the holiday from the afternoon well into the night. Heres a quick look at the games this Sunday, the unofficial start to the league year:-Boston at New York, 12 p.m. EST: Kristaps Porzingis and the Knicks have lost three straight and face the improving Celtics, who are still trying to find another gear with Al Horford healthy.-Golden State at Cleveland, 2:30 p.m.: The long-awaited rematch of one of the best NBA Finals in years, served up just after youve assembled a toy or two for the kids to play with.-Chicago at San Antonio, 5 p.m.: Dwyane Wade and the struggling Bulls look for this showcase slot to get them going against former Bull Pau Gasol and the Spurs.-Timberwolves at Thunder, 8 p.m.: This was supposed to be the coming-out party for the young Wolves in the small-market special, but they are off to a horrid 7-19 start.-Clippers at Lakers, 10:30 p.m.: After putting the kids to bed, unwind from the hectic holiday season with a Tinseltown nightcap.---STAT LINE OF THE WEEK:Bradley Beal, Wizards, 41 points, 13-23 FG, 6-10 3s, 9-11 FTs vs. Clippers on Sunday. With apologies to Russell Westbrook, who could appear in this space just about every week, Beals stat line against the Clippers was one of the most encouraging lines of the week. After injuries for the last two years, Beal has regained his form and helped the Wizards rebound from a horrible start to the season. Their surprise win over Los Angeles was the teams third in a row and fifth out of the last six games to move them to 12-14 after a 2-8 start. ' ' '