Atlanta (51-61) at San Francisco (47-64)

While the San Francisco Giants are still struggling to score, their starting pitching appears to have turned a corner this month. Jonathan Sanchez hopes that trend continues.

Sanchez and the Giants look for their fourth victory in five games when they continue their three-game series against the slumping Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.

San Francisco (47-64) defeated the Braves 4-2 in Monday’s series opener to win for the third time in four games after dropping five of its previous six.

Aaron Rowand had a RBI single after going hitless in 13 at-bats in his previous four games, while rookie John Bowker added his 40th RBI, but just his second in 15 games since the All-Star break.

Although the Giants won again, their offense has been almost nonexistent lately, producing 10 runs in their last six games. Since July 24, San Francisco has scored a major league-low 25 runs, as it has plated four runs or less in 10 of 11 games.

With their offense laboring, the Giants have had to rely on their pitching.

Matt Cain gave up one run in 6 2-3 innings on Monday, and San Francisco’s starters have yielded only four runs over 28 innings in four starts this month.

Sanchez (8-7, 4.61 ERA) takes the ball Tuesday hoping August goes better than July.

Sanchez went 0-3 with an 8.57 ERA in five starts last month with the Giants losing each game. The left-hander was 6-1 with a 3.06 ERA in his previous eight outings.

On Wednesday, Sanchez yielded four runs, five hits and four walks in four innings of a 4-0 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has logged a career-high 123 innings.

“I didn’t have it today, but I’m not tired,” he told the Giants’ official Web site.

This will be Sanchez’s first career start against Atlanta.

The Braves (51-61) lost for the eighth time in 10 games on Monday.

Atlanta, which placed major league batting leader Chipper Jones and No. 1 starter Tim Hudson on the disabled list on July 28, has lost three straight road games after winning five of its previous six away from Turner Field.

Mike Hampton (0-0, 10.00) makes his third start of the season Tuesday in his first appearance against the Giants in more than five years.

Hampton, a former 22-game winner and two-time All-Star, had Tommy John surgery at the end of the 2005 season, and has endured several injuries since then, including a strained pectoral muscle and strained groin this season.

In his first start in nearly three years, Hampton allowed six runs and eight hits in four-plus innings of Atlanta’s 10-9 loss to Philadelphia on July 26. On Thursday, the left-hander gave up four runs and seven hits in five innings of the Braves’ 9-4 win over St. Louis.

“The competitor in me wants to be perfect right away,” Hampton said. “But I know it’s going to take a little time. I was a little more confident this time.”

This will be Hampton’s first start against San Francisco since May 11, 2003 when he gave up three runs in five innings to post a 7-3 win. He is 13-4 with a 3.68 ERA in 21 career starts versus the Giants, and 2-3 with a 4.37 ERA in seven starts at AT&T Park.