Derek Lowe got pounded into the ground last night, giving up 8 runs in 3.1 IP as the Cardinals put themselves on the verge of a sweep. Thankfully for the Dodgers, the young gun came up dealing.
This afternoon belonged to Clayton Kershaw, who was awesome today in limiting the Cardinals to 1 run in 7 innings, as the Dodgers got another homer from Manny Ramirez to win, 4-1. The win puts them back at .500 after 114 games.
The 1st inning was again the Dodgers' best friend as they got on the board, and surprisingly it happened with 2 outs. Jeff Kent hit a ground rule double, and Manny walked. James Loney came through with an RBI single for the early lead.
Manny again launched one in the 3rd, his 4th in only 6 games with LA. Have I mentioned lately how much I love this trade? Ya, I do. It's not like he'll continue hitting home runs at this pace (can he?), but it's nice to have at least one person in the lineup that can be counted on for power.
The final run came in the 4th, and it happened with 2 outs, always a good sign. Juan Pierre was the leadoff hitter today, and he tripled home Danny Ardoin, who got a rare start for the resting Russell Martin (good move, Russ has been struggling lately).
Other than Manny, obviously, the story was Kershaw, who has put together 3 great starts in a row. Since getting recalled and getting pasted in Colorado, he has 2 wins in that time while giving up 1 run in 19 innings. He could not have possibly picked a better time to pitch well, since Brad Penny is back and rotation spots are hard to come by. Jason Johnson is the odd man out, not Kershaw.
Getting the win today was nice, but this series was a bit of a disappointment. Tuesday they had a solid comeback, but came up short. Wednesday they got their teeth kicked in. I don't know what it is about St. Louis, but they look lost there. Let's hope the playoff road does not go through there.
The Dodgers now travel to San Francisco for 3, and they are atrocious. Penny makes his return from the DL to make his first start since getting pounded in Detroit on June 14. Barry Zito is the opposing pitcher... but hold the phone. He just went 8 and none against the Padres last start, so maybe he doesn't suck quite as badly as he once did. I mean, he still sucks, but maybe not as much. We will see.
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