Atlanta (16-18) at Milwaukee (18-17)

J.D. Drew is giving the Atlanta Braves the type of production they hoped for this season.

Drew will try to homer for the fourth consecutive game when the Braves meet the Milwaukee Brewers in the middle game of their series at Miller Park.

The Braves acquired Drew in an offseason trade with the St. Louis Cardinals with the hope he could fill the offensive void left by Gary Sheffield, who signed a free-agent deal with the New York Yankees.

He’s been filling that role especially well in recent games. Drew homered for the third straight game Friday, and Chipper Jones followed with a solo shot of his own in the eighth inning to lead Atlanta to a 2-0 win in the series opener.

It was the first time this season the Braves have hit consecutive home runs.

“I’m seeing the ball well and trying to put decent swings on it,” said Drew, who went 1-for-4. “I didn’t have anything other than a home run to show for it tonight. I felt like I saw the ball good and took some good swings. That last at-bat I just tried to stay on top of it. It worked out well.”

The Braves have won two straight following a stretch in which they dropped six of seven.

Milwaukee had won five of six before Friday.

Lyle Overbay went 2-for-3 to extend his career-high hitting streak to 15 games. He’s one shy of the club’s National League record set by Mark Loretta in 2001. Milwaukee has been in the NL since 1998.

STANDINGS (through May 14): Braves - 3rd place, 3 1/2 GB, NL East. Brewers - 4th place, 3 GB, NL Central.

BRAVES PROBABLE STARTER: Russ Ortiz (3-4, 4.42 ERA). Ortiz has allowed no more than two earned runs in four of his past five starts. The 29-year-old right-hander gave up two runs and two hits over 6 2-3 innings Sunday in a 2-1 loss to the Houston Astros. Ortiz is 4-2 with a 4.67 ERA in seven career games against the Brewers.

BREWERS PROBABLE STARTER: Matt Kinney (1-2, 7.53 ERA). Kinney, who has split time between the rotation and bullpen, earned his first win of the season last Saturday. He allowed just one hit in 2 2-3 scoreless innings of relief in a 6-4 win over the New York Mets. The 27-year-old right-hander has no record and a 3.86 ERA in two career games against the Braves.

OFFENSIVE LEADERS: Braves - Marcus Giles, .333 avg. and 6 SBs; Drew, 7 HRs and 25 runs; Johnny Estrada, 22 RBIs. Brewers - Overbay, .356 avg. and 34 RBIs; Keith Ginter, 6 HRs; Scott Podsednik, 27 runs and 19 SBs.

SEASON SERIES: Braves, 1-0.

STREAKS AND NOTES: Braves - The Braves placed INF Jesse Garcia on bereavement leave after his grandmother died. To fill his roster spot, they called up INF Nick Green from Triple-A Richmond. … SS Rafael Furcal has been held out of the starting lineup for 12 consecutive games with a jammed right ring finger. He’s available to pinch-hit. … RHP Ortiz has 35 strikeouts in 38 2-3 innings this season. Brewers - SS Craig Counsell is batting .429 (9-for-21) in his career against RHP Ortiz. … 2B Junior Spivey, bothered by a right hamstring injury, has only appeared in one game since May 2. He’s still listed as day-to-day. … 1B Overbay leads the NL with 19 doubles.

ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Braves - 8-11 on the road; Brewers - 10-8 at home.

INJURIES: Braves - OF Eli Marrero (upper respiratory infection), 15-day DL; RHP Paul Byrd (elbow), 60-day DL. Brewers - LHP Chris Capuano (quadriceps), 15-day DL.