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Matt Kemp hit a three-run home run, his 32nd homer of the season, in defeat.
Before Sunday's series finale at Turner Field in Atlanta, the Los Angeles Dodgers recalled relief pitcher Ramon Troncoso from Triple A Albuquerque. Troncoso gives the Dodgers 16 pitchers, and pushes the active roster to 29 players. More moves are expected in the upcoming week, as Triple A Albuquerque ends their season Monday. Double A Chattanooga will be in the Southern League playoffs, but a few pitchers might be recalled from that level as well.
This is Troncoso's third stint with the Dodgers this season. He has a 6.23 ERA with three walks and just seven strikeouts in 17 innings, though he showed marked improvement in his second call-up, with a 3.68 ERA in 10 appearances. Troncoso was 2-4 with a 5.05 ERA in 57 innings in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League this season.
Here are the starting lineups in the series finale with the Atlanta Braves:
Bourn CF
Prado 1B
Diaz RF
Uggla 2B
Ross C
Gonzalez SS
Wilson 3B
Constanza LF
Delgado P
Gordon SS
Loney 1B
Kemp CF
Rivera LF
Ethier RF
Miles 3B
Barajas C
Sellers 2B
Kershaw P
Sunday morning's 10:35 a.m. PDT game will be televised on KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are simply on fire right now, having won six straight games and 11 of their last 12. They go for a weekend sweep of the Atlanta Braves on Sunday morning, sending Cy Young candidate Clayton Kershaw to the mound in search of his 18th win.
Kershaw is 17-5 on the season with a 2.45 ERA, and in his last 13 starts is 11-2 with a 1.62 ERA, with 19 walks and 106 strikeouts in 100 innings. Kershaw allowed three runs in 8 2/3 innings to the Braves at Dodger Stadium on April 21. Kershaw left the game trailing 3-2 but got a no-decision as the Dodgers tied the game in the ninth inning and won on a walk-off home run by Matt Kemp in the 12th inning.
The Dodgers won their season-high sixth straight game with a 2-1 win in 10 innings on Saturday. During their last 12 games, of which the Dodgers have won 11 games, the L.A. offense has averaged 6.25 runs per game. The Dodgers are 5-1 against the Braves this season.
Jair Jurrjens was originally scheduled to start on Sunday for Atlanta, but an MRI earlier in the week revealed a bone bruise in his knee. While Jurrjens is in Colorado getting a second opinion on his diagnosis, the Braves will send 21-year old Randall Delgado to the mound, making his third major league start.
Sunday morning's 10:35 a.m. PDT game will be televised on KCAL. For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
Dodgers Vs. Braves: Winning Streak Ends With 4-3 Walk-Off Loss In Atlanta
Martin Prado delivered a two-out RBI single down the left field line off Blake Hawksowrth in the ninth inning, giving the Atlanta Braves a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers to prevent a series sweep at Turner Field in Atlanta. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Dodgers, who seemed to have everything aligned perfectly earlier in the game.
With two runners on and first base open in the third inning, the Braves opted to pitch to Matt Kemp, and he made them pay with a laser beam three-run home run into the seats in left field. The Dodgers led 3-0 with Clayton Kershaw on the mound, and Kershaw was cruising through six innings.
Two singles, a throwing error by Aaron Miles, and a broken-bat bloop single by Brooks Conrad tied the game off Kershaw, ending his chance at an 18th win of the season. Kershaw will have to settle for a 10-strikeout, no-walk performance and an ERA that rose all the way from 2.446 to 2.451. Such is life.
The Dodgers move on to Washington DC to face the Nationals for four games beginning on Labor Day. Hiroki Kuroda starts the opener for the Dodgers, facing John Lannan for Washington.
For more news and information on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.
Sep 04 2:31p by Eric Stephen