Dodgers Vs. Reds: Aaron Harang Likely To Start Sunday On 3 Days Rest

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Don Mattingly announced on Thursday that Aaron Harang will likely start against the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday on three days rest. The rotation is being shuffled in order to keep Josh Beckett on a regular schedule. Harang pitched on Wednesday, going 4⅓ innings while giving up two runs on seven hits and two walks.

Mattingly's other option to pitch on Sunday is John Ely, who has made only two big-league appearances this year, both of which came in relief. Joe Blanton will start on Friday, and rookie Stephen Fife will take the ball on Saturday.

The Dodgers are currently three games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the final Wild Card spot with 12 games remaining. The Reds have already clinched a playoff berth, but their magic number to clinch the NL Central is only two.

For more on Dodgers baseball, be sure to read True Blue LA. You can also check out everything we have to offer at Baseball Nation.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Game Recap: Washington Takes Series With 4-1 Win

The Los Angeles Dodgers lost to the Washington Nationals on Thursday, 4-1, losing the series to Washington two games to one. With the loss, the Dodgers fell to three games back in the National League Wild Card race.

Chris Capuano took the loss for the Dodgers, allowing four runs over five innings. The Nationals jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the third inning. Los Angeles got a run back in the top of the fourth inning on Mark Ellis' seventh home run of the season, but Washington extended its lead to 4-1 in the bottom of the inning.

Ross Detwiler started the game for the Nationals and was able to limit the Dodgers to just three hits and one run over six innings. Detwiler struck out five while walking just one. The Nationals' bullpen closed the game with three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit. With the win, the Nationals clinched a playoff berth, the organization's first since the Montreal Expos made the playoffs in 1991.

The Dodgers will stay on the road, traveling to Cincinnati to begin a three-game series with the Reds on Friday.

For more on Dodgers baseball, be sure to read True Blue LA. You can also check out everything we have to offer at Baseball Nation.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Game Preview: L.A. Seeks First Series Win In Nearly A Month

The Los Angeles Dodgers conclude a three-game series with the N.L. East leading Washington Nationals in Washington D.C. on Thursday night, in search of their first series win in nearly a month.

Los Angeles hasn't won a series since a winning two games of three-game set at home against the Miami Marlins on Aug. 24-26. Not only would a series win be a step in the right direction for a team which has been floundering of late, it'd keep the Dodgers' slim NL Wild Card hopes alive, as they currently trail the St. Louis Cardinals by two games for the second N.L. Wild Card spot.

The Dodgers will send left-hander Chris Capuano (11-10, 3.60) to the mound on Thursday. He's struggled in his last five starts, posting an 0-2 record and a 6.26 ERA, including giving up six runs on six hits in five innings in his last start on Aug. 22 in the Dodgers 11-9 loss to the San Francisco Giants.

The Nationals will counter with a lefty of their own, as Ross Detwiler (9-6, 3.16), takes the hill for the Nats. Detwiler is 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA in his last five starts.

First pitch in Washington is slated for 4:05 p.m. PT and the game will be televised on Prime Ticket and The MLB Network.

For more on Dodgers baseball, be sure to read True Blue LA. You can also check out everything we have to offer at Baseball Nation.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Game 2 Recap: Dodgers Split Doubleheader With 7-6 Win

After dropping the first game of the doubleheader on Wednesday, the Dodgers salvaged a split with the Nationals by winning the second game, 7-6.

Los Angeles appeared to be cruising to an easy win, but ended up needing a late Matt Kemp home run to secure the win. The Dodgers jumped out to a 6-0 lead with three runs in the third inning and three more in the fourth. That appeared to be plenty of run support for Josh Beckett, who cruised through the first seven innings.

Beckett held the Nationals to just two hits and no runs through seven innings, but ran into trouble in the bottom of the eighth inning. Michael Morse and Stephen Lombardozzi hit home runs to cut the lead to 6-3 and chase Beckett from the game. Randy Choate came in and gave up two hits without recording an out. After leading off the inning with a home run, Morse capped the six-run inning with an RBI single.

After blowing the six-run lead, the Dodgers looked to be in jeapordy of losing their third straight game, but Kemp led off the ninth inning with his 19th home run of the year. Brandon League pictched a perfect bottom of the ninth to record his third save with the Dodgers.

With the win, the Dodgers kept pace with the Braves and Cardinals in NL Wild Card race. Both St. Louis and Atlanta won on Wednesday, leaving the Dodgers two games back of the second Wild Card spot.

For more on the Dodgers, head over to True Blue L.A.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Game 1 Recap: Los Angeles Falls 3-1

The Los Angeles Dodgers came into game one of their doubleheader on Wednesday with the Washington Nationals in need of a victory, but couldn't muster much offense against Jordan Zimmerman and the Nats bullpen en route to a 3-1 loss at Nationals Park.

Zimmerman (W, 11-8) allowed a number of Dodgers baserunners this afternoon with six hits, four walks and a hit batsman to his credit. Hanley Ramirez's RBI single in the third plated L.A.'s lone run, as Zimmerman lasted six innings and the bullpen took over from there.

The Nats weren't exactly knocking the cover off the ball, as a Kurt Suzuki sacrifice fly and a pair of RBI groundouts from Ryan Zimmerman and Tyler Moore accounted for the three Washington runs this afternoon.

Aaron Harang (L, 9-10) would last just 4.1 innings after allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks, while reliever Shawn Tolleson would be tagged with a run as well. Los Angeles left 11 runners on base this afternoon.

The Dodgers and Nationals will begin game two of the doubleheader soon with Josh Beckett taking on John Lannan.

For more on the Dodgers, head over to True Blue L.A.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals: Double-Header Set For Wednesday

After getting rained out on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals will play a double-header on Wednesday, with the Boys in Blue looking to make up some ground in the NL West and Wild Card races.

Aaron Harang (9-9, 3.79 ERA) gets the ball for L.A. in game one. He is is 0-2 with a 4.71 ERA over his last four starts but 1-1 with a 2.19 ERA in his past four versus Washington. Josh Beckett (6-13, 4.94 ERA) will take the mound in game two. He 1-2 with a 3.38 ERA in four starts since joining the Dodgers, and hasn't faced the Nationals since 2005.

Washington will counter with Jordan Zimmermann (10-8, 3.01) who is 1-2 with a 6.03 ERA so far in September. He hasn't pitched against the Dodgers since 2009. John Lannan (3-0, 2.41) gets the start in game two. He is 4-0 with a 2.28 ERA in his last four starts against Los Angeles.

Los Angeles finds themselves 8.5 games behind the Giants in the NL West and 1.5 games back in the Wild Card.

First pitch for game one is set for 1:05 p.m. PT, while game two is scheduled to start at 4:05 p.m PT. Both games can be found on KCAL and 570 Fox Sports L.A.

For more on the Dodgers, head over to True Blue L.A.

2012 MLB Standings: Dodgers, Angels Both Pushing For Wild Card

The Angels and Dodgers both currently reside on the outside of the playoffs, but remain in contention for Wild Card spots.

The Dodgers enter play on Wednesday just 1½ games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the last playoff spot in the National League. Both teams have struggled down the stretch, as L.A. has went 3-7 over its last 10 games, but only lost one game in the standings to St. Louis in that span. The Dodgers have nine games left with division leaders, as they play three each against the Nationals, Reds and Giants. The Cardinals also face the Nationals and Giants, but have five more to play with the Houston Astros.

The Angels have a little more ground to make up. They are currently three games behind the Baltimore Orioles for the final Wild Card spot in the American League. The Angels have played well, winning four of their last five, but Baltimore has won three straight. The Angels do have six games left against the Mariners, who they have had success against.

For the full standings, check out S.I.'s MLB Standings page.

For more on the Angels, head to Angels blog Halos Heaven. For all things Dodgers, head to Dodgers blog True Blue LA.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Rained Out Tuesday; Doubleheader Wednesday

The Los Angeles Dodgers had the opener of their three-game series with the Washington Nationals rained out on Tuesday, which means a doubleheader on Wednesday at Nationals Park. Here are the starting pitchers for Wednesday's games.

Game 1 - 1:05 p.m. PDT
Aaron Harang (9-9, 3.79 ERA) gets the call in the series opener for the Dodgers, in his fifth try at earning his 10th win of the season. Harang has allowed exactly three runs in each of his last four starts, pitching between five and 5 2/3 innings in each game. Jordan Zimmerman (10-8, 3.01), who has been among the National League ERA leaders all season, gets the start for Washington just three starts removed from allowing eight runs against the Cardinals. That was just one of three starts for Zimmerman allowing more than three runs in his last 19 outings.

Game 2
Josh Beckett (6-13, 4.94) starts for the Dodgers, looking for his second win as a Dodger. Since joining Los Angeles, Beckett has 24 strikeouts and nine walks in 24 innings. John Lannan (3-0, 2.41), tagged as the man who replaced Stephen Strasburg in the rotation, starts for the Nats, looking for his fourth win in as many starts for Washington this season.

For more news and notes on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals: Starting Lineups

The Los Angeles Dodgers will look to keep their N.L. Wild Card hopes alive as they face the N.L. East leading Washington Nationals in the first game of the three game series in Washington D.C. on Tuesday.

Matt Kemp is in the three hole for the Dodgers despite posting a .133 batting average since Aug. 28, a game in which he had a violent collision with the centerfield wall at Coors Field.

The Dodgers will send right-hander Aaron Harang (9-9, 3.79) to the mound. He's 1-2 with a 3.90 ERA in his last five starts. Los Angeles currently trails the St. Louis Cardinals by one game for the second N.L. Wild Card spot.

The Nationals will counter with right-hander Jordan Zimmerman, who has struggled in his last five starts, posting a 1-1 record with a hefty 6.66 ERA. Tuesday night's game also marks the return of left fielder Michael Morse, who has been out of the Nats lineup since last week with a bone bruise in his left wrist.

The lineups for Tuesday night's game are as follows:

Los Angeles Dodgers

1. Mark Ellis (R) 2B
2. Andre Ethier (L) RF
3. Matt Kemp (R) CF
4. Adrian Gonzalez (L) 1B
5. Hanley Ramirez (R) SS
6. Shane Victorino (S) LF
7. Luis Cruz (R) 3B
8. A.J. Ellis (R) C
9. Aaron Harang (R) P

Washington Nationals

1. Jayson Werth (R) RF
2. Bryce Harper (L) CF
3. Ryan Zimmerman (R) 3B
4. Adam LaRoche (L) 1B
5. Michael Morse (R) LF
6. Ian Desmond (R) SS
7. Kurt Suzuki (R) C
8. Steve Lombardozzi (S) 2B
9. Jordan Zimmermann (R) P

First pitch is slated for 4:05 p.m. PT, and the game will be televised on KCAL and The MLB Network.

For more on Dodgers baseball, be sure to read True Blue LA. You can also check out everything we have to offer at Baseball Nation.

Kenley Jansen Cleared To Pitch Tuesday For Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are awaiting word on the status of their best starting pitcher after Clayton Kershaw met with a hip specialist in New York on Tuesday, but they got good news on their best reliever. Kenley Jansen has been cleared to pitch as the Dodgers open a three-game series against the Washington Nationals.

Jansen was hospitalized in Denver on Aug. 27 with an irregular heartbeat, a recurrence of a condition that sidelined him for four weeks last season. Jansen was shut down after getting put on blood thinners, but was able to throw his bullpen sessions and continue to workout with the team. He just couldn't risk pitching in a game while on blood thinners, for fear of getting hit by a ball causing internal bleeding.

After meeting with doctors last week, Jansen was taken off blood thinners on Friday, and given the weekend to make sure the medication was out of his system. While sidelined, Jansen was anxious to return.

"It's hard, it's frustrating. I don't want to think about it anymore. But you have to take care of your health first, and that's what I did," Jansen said last Friday. "I just have to get my mind back into that focus, and get ready for Tuesday."

Jansen is 5-3 with a 2.54 ERA and 25 saves this season, with 86 strikeouts and 19 walks in 56 2/3 innings.

Manager Don Mattingly said Jansen would be his closer, though he would prefer to bring him into a game in a non-save situation first, just to get him used to pitching again.

For more news on the Dodgers, be sure to read True Blue LA.

Clayton Kershaw Dodgers' Nominee For 2012 Roberto Clemente Award

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced that Clayton Kershaw was chosen as the team nominee to receive the Roberto Clemente Award given to a player who "best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement."

The award is given to the MLB player who shows an understanding of how it important it is to help others, and it was named after Clemente, a 15-time MLB All-Star who died in a plane crash en route to help earthquake victims in 1972.

Kershaw, who is 12-9 with a 2.70 ERA this season, is extremely involved in charity work with his wife. The two started Kershaw's Challenge, which helps at-risk children. They have put forth efforts in raising money to help an orphanage in Zambia, and have also co-authored a book in addition to their work in baseball clinics during the offseason.

The honor for the Dodgers' pitcher comes right after he became a nominee for the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award.

Check True Blue LA for more on the Los Angeles Dodgers or hit up SB Nation's MLB hub, Baseball Nation.

Dodgers Vs. Nationals Preview: L.A. Opens Road Trip In Washington D.C.

The Los Angeles Dodgers begin an important nine-game road trip when they face the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.

Dodgers Face Tough Test; Will Offense Respond?

The Dodgers trail the Cardinals by one game for the second wild card spot in the National League.