+3
Kershaw leads the National League with 207 strikeouts.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Don Mattingly switched up his lineup Monday night, dropping Andre Ethier from third to fifth and moving Matt Kemp up from cleanup to third. For Tuesday's game with the St. Louis Cardinals, the new lineup gets its second test drive. It's not a case of if it ain't broke don't fix it, because the Dodgers were held scoreless until plating two runs in the ninth inning in the series opener.
James Loney, who has seven hits in his last eight at-bats, bats second for the second straight night, while Juan Rivera bats cleanup again as well. Rookie shortstop Justin Sellers, who did not start Monday, bats leadoff against Kyle Lohse and the Cardinals. Here are the starting lineups:
Sellers SS
Loney 1B
Kemp CF
Rivera LF
Ethier RF
Miles 3B
Barajas C
Carroll 2B
Kershaw P
Furcal SS
Craig CF
Pujols 1B
Holliday LF
Berkman RF
Freese 3B
Molina C
Theriot 2B
Rafael Furcal gets his first start since Friday after injuring his thumb over the weekend at Wrigley Field. Furcal came in for defense Monday night and mishandled a ground ball, leading to the winning run for the Dodgers.
Tuesday's 5:15 p.m. PDT game will be televised by KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
The Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday designated catcher Dioner Navarro for assignment and recalled A.J. Ellis from Triple A Albuqerque to take his place. The timing of the move was odd, as rosters expand in nine days anyway, and Ellis was going to join the Dodgers at that time or soon after.
Navarro was hitting just .193/.276/.324 in 64 games this season, but since the All-Star break had improved to .213/.347/.393 in 22 games, including three home runs. Navarro signed a one-year, $1 million contract last winter to backup Rod Barajas. The Dodgers have 10 days to trade or release Navarro, who is now off the 40-man roster.
Ellis has been with the Dodgers in two previous stints this season, hitting .222/.364/.222 in 16 games. Ellis hit .304/.467/.418 in 59 games with Triple A Albuquerque this season.
The Dodgers now just have two catchers on the 40-man roster, making it nearly a given that Triple A catcher Tim Federowicz will be added once rosters expand in September. Federowicz was acquired with two relief pitchers from the Red Sox on July 31 for outfielder Trayvon Robinson.
Tuesday's 5:15 p.m. PDT game will be televised by KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
Clayton Kershaw continues to make his case for the National League Cy Young Award Tuesday night as the Los Angeles Dodgers battle the St. Louis Cardinals in the second game of a three-game series at Busch Stadium. Kershaw will have an uphill battle against the trio of stalwarts in Philadelphia, but he has been on a roll heading into the home stretch of the season.
Kershaw leads the National League with 199 strikeouts, and will almost assuredly tonight become the first Dodger since Chan Ho Park 10 years ago to strikeout 200 or more in back-to-back seasons. Kershaw is tied for the league lead with 15 wins, with Roy Halladay of the Phillies and Ian Kennedy of the Diamondbacks. Not that wins are all important, but it might be enough to sway voters.
| NL Wins Above Replacement Leaders | ||
| Pitcher | Team | WAR |
| Roy Halladay | PHI | 6.9 |
| Clayton Kershaw | LA | 5.3 |
| Cliff Lee |
PHI | 5.2 |
| Cole Hamels | PHI | 5.0 |
| Matt Cain | SF | 4.6 |
| Tim Lincecum | SF | 4.4 |
| Madison Bumgarner | SF | 4.3 |
| Source: FanGraphs | ||
In his last 12 starts, Kershaw is 9-2 with a 1.76 ERA, with 97 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 92 innings. He has pitched eight innings in each of his last two starts, both wins. Currently Kershaw is fifth in the NL with a 2.60 ERA, and with a little improvement plus a slide from Johnny Cueto and his 1.89 ERA, Kershaw could possibly win the pitching triple crown.
Again, unadjusted ERA and wins aren't the best way to measure pitchers, but if Kershaw ends up at the top in both categories he would have a good shot at actually winning the award. For my money, Halladay is the favorite for the Cy Young, but Kershaw is within shouting distance and a strong finish could help his case.
Beginning tonight in St. Louis.
Pitching for the Cardinals tonight is Kyle Lohse, who is 11-7 with a 3.33 ERA this season. The Dodgers' win on Monday night was their 1,000th win all-time against the Cardinals. St. Louis leads the all-time series, which dates back to 1892, 1,001-1,000.
Tuesday's 5:15 p.m. PDT game will be televised by KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
Dodgers Vs. Cardinals: Barajas Supplies Power, Kershaw Wins 16th In 13-2 Triumph
Rod Barajas hit two home runs and had a ground-rule double, providing offensive support for Clayton Kershaw, who pitched six scoreless innings as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 13-2 Tuesday night at Busch Stadium. Not that Kershaw needed much support. The left-hander pitched six scoreless innings in the sweltering heat, earning his 16th victory of the season, tied for most in the National League.
Matt Kemp got things started, hitting a three-run home run in the top of the first inning off Kyle Lohse, giving the Dodgers a 3-0 lead after just three batters. It was the 29th home run of the season for Kemp, who also doubled on the night. Kemp needs one more home run to join Raul Mondesi as the only Dodger members of the 30/30 club.
Barajas added a solo shot in the third inning to make it 8-0, and a three-run home run in the fifth to make it 11-0 Dodgers. Barajas also hit a double down the left field line that bounced and hit over the fence in left field, capping quite a night for the Dodgers catcher. Barajas was the first Dodgers catcher to hit two home runs in a game since Russell Martin on August 15, 2007.
Kershaw struck out eight in his six innings, pushing his National League-leading total to 207. The six scoreless innings lowered Kershaw's ERA to 2.51, and he is tied with Ian Kennedy of Arizona for the league lead with 16 wins.
Skip Schumaker, normally an infielder, pitched the ninth inning for the Cardinals, and even struck out Trent Oeltjen. Schumaker hit 93 mph once on the radar gun. However, former Cardinal and friend of Schumaker Aaron Miles took the position player deep with a no-doubt home run to right field. By winning the first two games of the series at Busch Stadium, the Dodgers achieved their first regular season series win St. Louis since 2003.
For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
Aug 23 8:35p by Eric Stephen