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Another series Cody Kessler Jersey , another opponent sitting at the top of its division.

That’s the scenario for the St. Louis Cardinals this weekend as they welcome the Atlanta Braves, who lead the National League East, for a three-game series at Busch Stadium starting Friday.

And Atlanta (45-34) will be a stronger team offensively for the series. Prized rookie outfielder Ronald Acuna will be activated off the 10-day disabled list for Friday night’s game and should slot right into the lineup.

The 21-year-old Acuna, who missed a month with a right knee injury suffered on May 27 in Boston, hit .265 with five homers and 13 RBIs in his first 117 big league at-bats. Acuna recorded a solid .779 OPS, although his 10 walks and 37 strikeouts suggests he needs to gain a bit more control of the strike zone.

Acuna’s return at least tempers worries about the status of center fielder Ender Inciarte, who left Wednesday’s 6-5 loss to Cincinnati when he felt discomfort near his left oblique. Should Inciarte have to miss any time, Acuna could bat near the top of the lineup.

The Braves missed a chance to extend their division lead during a six-game homestand against two last-place teams. They lost two of three to Baltimore, which has the worst record in baseball, and dropped two of three to Cincinnati, which isn’t playing like a last-place team at the moment with nine wins in 10 games.

“We didn’t play up to our capabilities 100 percent Joseph Noteboom Jersey ,” Atlanta starting pitcher Sean Newcomb said to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “You’re not going to every day. I know we’re going to come back out at St. Louis and be pretty strong, pitching and offensively.”

The Braves will have to be strong to deal with Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas (8-2, 2.69 ERA), who has been one of baseball’s best free-agent finds this year. Signed after three successful years in Japan, Mikolas has put together an All-Star resume with St. Louis.

He is coming off a 3-2 win Saturday in Milwaukee, giving up only three hits and two runs to the NL Central leaders in a 6 2/3-inning effort. Mikolas walked two and fanned five, giving him 71 strikeouts and just 12 walks in 97 innings.

Mikolas has faced Atlanta just once in his career, throwing two shutout innings in relief six years ago when he pitched for San Diego.

Julio Teheran (5-5, 4.52) will continue a season-long search for consistency as he starts for the Braves. After tossing six no-hit innings on June 17 in a win over San Diego, Teheran was belted around Saturday for seven runs on six hits in 4 2/3 innings of a 7-5 loss to Baltimore.

The veteran right-hander has made five career starts against the Cardinals, going 1-3 with a 3.86 earned run average. Two players who have hurt him are Matt Carpenter Darren Fells Jersey , who is 6-for-12 with two homers, and Marcell Ozuna, who is batting .405 with three homers in 42 career at-bats against Teheran.

St. Louis (42-37) had a four-game winning streak snapped Wednesday with a 5-1 loss to Cleveland.

When veteran Todd Desgrosseilliers was recovering from battle wounds, he went back to a boyhood love: fly fishing. The organization he now leads has 8,500 participants, one of whom was so inspired by Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing that he told Desgrosseilliers: "This program saved my life."
Desgrosseilliers' group for disabled veterans is one of many receiving funding though the Bob Woodruff Foundation , which this week secured an agreement with the NFL to support such initiatives.

"The Bob Woodruff Foundation provides us with a grant each year that supports one of our largest programs, rod building," Desgrosseilliers says. "We had over 900 veterans participate in it as part of a larger core of activities we have that include fly fishing education and outings.

"When our participants are able to come to the meetings, the rod building provides them with an activity that kind of brings them together, creates camaraderie."

Such pastimes create more than that. For Desgrosseilliers Kavon Frazier Jersey , who learned to fly fish with his great-grandfather and grandfather in Maine, it has been an effective therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder and vertigo he suffered after a traumatic head injury in combat.

There are 222 programs nationwide under the Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing umbrella. They stage local and regional events as well as national destination trips; 400 members will go on a variety of excursions this year, including to Alaska or the Florida Keys.

"It's a group of disabled veterans coming together with folks who care about them, and they are involved in an activity that is fun," Desgrosseilliers says. "We partner our programs with fly fishing organizations to provide the (3,500) volunteers who know how to do the fly fishing basics."

The Woodruff Foundation was founded in 2006 after reporter Woodruff was hit by a roadside bomb while covering the war in Iraq. To date, the foundation has invested more than $55 million to find, fund and shape programs that have empowered veterans, service members and their families.

Its $2 million affiliation with the NFL announced this week will bolster the grant work done by the foundation.

"The NFL is such a prominent American brand and one that has a longstanding commitment to the veteran community," says Marshall Lauck, the foundation's chief growth and marketing officer. "This is not something new to them; their history with supporting veterans and active military members is strong. This is a time with increased interest on their part in how they can most effectively support the veteran community (through nonprofits).

"Our expertise can be very helpful for the NFL in its goals in supporting these communities."

One program receiving grants from the foundation is Hire Heroes USA. Hire Heroes provides individualized personal assistance to transitioning veterans and military spouses Anthony Zettel Jersey , helping them with interview coaching, resume coaching or finding the right fit for a veteran entering the workforce.

That group recently passed the 25,000 mark for veterans being hired.

Another organization, Bunker Labs, helps veterans with entrepreneurship opportunities.

There are some similarities to NFL players transitioning from the sport into the "real world" and veterans adjusting after leaving the service.

"I think the challenge we had with the NFL was in putting together what is mutually beneficial in finding that common ground," says Anne Marie Dougherty, executive director of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. "We can meet what their organization and brand priorities are. There's not only affirmation of the need in this space, but also an investment in the solution.

"One of the uphill battles we continue to have working in this space is we have been a nation at war for the longest time in our history. And there is a sense for something to get media coverage it can be ... not positive. This is a really important time for us. We will put this money to good use."

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