Clayton Kershaw has been named the Game 1 starter for the NLCS against the Phillies. He gets the call over Randy Wolf, who will most likely go Game 2.
Joe Torre has decided to ride the hot hand, and the 21-year-old Kershaw is quickly becoming one of the major's hottest young stars. He battled Adam Wainwright in Game 2 of the Division Series and ended up with a no-decision in 6 and 2/3 innings, surrendering two runs. Most importantly, he kept the Dodgers within striking distance, which they took advantage of by winning in the ninth.
It's the right call to make, as it's hard to ignore somehow who has thrown 185 strikeouts in 171 innings in the regular season. We all saw how the hard-throwing Vicente Padilla shut down the Cardinals last round, so the thought is that Kershaw can also be overpowering.
Looking ahead, Hiroki Kuroda looks like he could be healthy enough to start Game 4 in Philadelphia. Kuroda's been battling a herniated disk in his neck, knocking him out of the Division Series. If he's back, that's a big lift for the Dodgers, as he proved last season that he can be very effective in the postseason.
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