Kershaw nearly unhittable in rout of Marlins

Clayton Kershaw came into today's game with some awful stats on the road, and with four regular starters resting. What looked to be a potentially tough game nearly turned into a historic one, as he threw seven no-hit innings in getting an easy win, 12-5. Cody Ross' double with no outs in the eighth was the only blemish.

With Rafael Furcal, Russell Martin, Andre Ethier, and Casey Blake all kicking back on a hot Sunday afternoon, the defense was as good as ever. The highlights were a great diving catches by Orlando Hudson at second and Xavier Paul in right in the first couple of innings. Once Kershaw settled down, he was fantastic.

Overall, Kershaw pitched seven strong, giving up one hit, one run, four walks, and nine strikeouts. Not bad for a guy that was 0-3 on the road coming into this game, and with a 5.21 ERA overall. Thanks to today's effort, it's now 4.60.

The runs started in the first, and were mostly obtained on John Koronka's throwing error. James Loney hit into a fielder's choice with two runners in scoring position, and the errant throw let Juan Pierre and Mark Loretta score.

Juan Castro hit his first homer of the season in the second. Walks were issued to Kershaw and Loretta, and with one down, Hudson hit into a fielder's choice. But Kershaw would come around to score on... you guessed it, a throwing error by Koronka. The guy nearly had as many errors (two) as innings pitched (2.2). Stats like that are reasons why the Marlins have fallen on hard times.

And here's the real salt in the wound: Koronka was designated for assignment after the game. Ouch!

With Kershaw dealing, the Dodgers continued to add to their lead as the game progressed. Both Pierre and Loretta traded two-run doubles in the third and eighth, respectively. Pierre hit another RBI double in the ninth, finishing the day 3-for-5 with two runs and three RBIs. He's batting .419 for the year! Even in limited duty during April, that's just an awesome batting average.

The only negative of this game was Guillermo Mota, who was rocked in the ninth. While Kershaw was throwing flames all day, Mota proved why he's buried at the bottom of the bullpen. Up 12-1 in the last inning, he got the first 2 hitters out. Then he let the bases get loaded before giving up a grand slam to Ross. Even in a blowout win, that's not good to see.

For the Dodgers, today's win put a stamp on a very successful road trip. Winning two of three in Philadelphia and Florida with all of the Manny drama is something that surprises a lot of people (me included). I knew they could play well, but they are rising above that and continuing to pull away in the NL West.

Following a cross-country trip back home, the Dodgers will open a three-game series with the Mets on Monday night. Randy Wolf finally got a much-deserved win his last start in Philly, and he'll look to get another one Monday. The best thing about this series is that Johan Santana won't be pitching! Are you upset about that? Nope, neither am I.