Dodgers Waste Another Kershaw Gem

by Eric Stephen on Aug 9, 2009 12:29 AM PDT in Game Recaps Comment 20 comments

Clayton Kershaw was magnificent tonight for the Dodgers.

I don't have much to say about tonight's 2-1 loss to the Braves, other than I was happy to finally see a Clayton Kershaw signature performance in person. I have been to a ton of Randy Wolf and Hiroki Kuroda starts this year, but tonight I was treated to quite a performance. Kershaw was dominant over his seven innings, allowing only two hits and a walk while striking out ten Braves.

But the Dodgers couldn't score for him. Kershaw has received five runs of support in his last four starts, so despite his 1.80 ERA during that time he has zero wins. In Kershaw's three best games this season, including the 13-strikeout game in April and the eight shutout innings in St. Louis last week, Kershaw has pitched a total of 22 innings, given up one run, yet has zero wins to show for it.

Kelly Johnson struck again tonight, with a two-run home run off Guillermo Mota in the 10th inning, just as the Dodger Stadium scoreboards showed his ERA a tick under 3.00. The Dodgers came close in the bottom of the inning, but Yunel Escobar saved the day on Matt Kemp's groundball up the middle, first by saving it from getting to the outfield, and then by somehow throwing out a speeding Bison at first base.

The Dodgers dropped to 17-4 in one-run games at home, and 23-13 overall in one-run games on the season.

I have no idea what to expect for tomorrow, except that Javier Vazquez starts for Atlanta. I know Eric Stults has been announced as the starter tomorrow, even after only two days rest from a 61-pitch effort on Thursday with the Isotopes, but stop me if you've heard this before.

On Friday, Scott Elbert was announced as the starter for Sunday's game, and he proceeded to pitch that night, giving up the game-winning hit and a three-run home run. He is now back in Albquerque.

On Saturday before the game, Jeff Weaver was announced as the starter for Sunday's game, and yet there he was, out of necessity, warming up in the bullpen in the 10th inning.

Call me skeptical, but I'll accept an announced Dodger starter for tomorrow's game when I see it with my own eyes.

WP - Kris Medlen (3-3): 2 IP, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts

LP - Guillermo Mota (3-3): 1 IP, 1 hit, 2 runs, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts

Sv - Rafael Soriano (17): 1 IP, 2 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout

Box Score

0 recs | Comment 20 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

This is your fault Eric Stephen!

Still don’t regret writing that the Dodgers already won the division?

by Tripon on Aug 9, 2009 12:46 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

A 5.5 game lead is pretty sweet.

I stand by my statement :)

by Eric Stephen on Aug 9, 2009 12:52 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

5.5?

by PHAT JULIO on Aug 9, 2009 2:13 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Really Eric?

I don’t think any Dodger fan is comfortable with that lead. They’re really slumping, this isn’t the Dodgers I know… No way

by PHAT JULIO on Aug 9, 2009 2:14 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Heading into today

Via Pecota.

Dodgers chances of winning the NL West were 76% and 92% of making the playoffs. Those odds dropped a little bit after tonight’s game. The games vs the Giants will be very high leverage games, needless to say.
vr, Xei

by Xeifrank on Aug 9, 2009 12:55 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sunday's Game

Just ran some quick numbers on tomorrow’s game. I am taking my best guess at the lineups, but surely there will be some slight differences.

Here are the win probabilities depending on who makes the start for the Dodgers.

J.Weaver: LAN 43.26%, O/U 8.31
E.Stults: LAN 45.63%, O/U 8.10

vr, Xei

by Xeifrank on Aug 9, 2009 12:52 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Does that take into account that Stults pitched 61 pitches on Thursday? I can’t imagine him pitching more than 3 or 4 IP tomorrow.

by Eric Stephen on Aug 9, 2009 12:57 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Nope, but it doesn’t make much of a difference if he is relieved by someone like Weaver. You can pretty much split the difference if you feel your scenario is the case.
vr, Xei

by Xeifrank on Aug 9, 2009 1:00 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Good point. I bet the Dodgers would be ecstatic if Stults and Weaver combined for 6 innings and the team was still in the game.

by Eric Stephen on Aug 9, 2009 1:02 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

The Dodgers went from playing with house money, to hopefully managing a split.

by Tripon on Aug 9, 2009 1:03 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

A split is a good thing..the Dodgers should be looking in the face of being swept.

by gobraves3940 on Aug 9, 2009 3:12 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Baseball is a funny game and any game as close as the first three could’ve gone either way for either team. Could be 3-0 LA or 3-0 ATL just as easily.
vr, Xei

by Xeifrank on Aug 9, 2009 10:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well this a been a rough couple games to be at

I’ve yelled myself horse over the last two nights, and I’m not happy. Friday night I’m sorry to say was a choke job, there’s no way around it. I know some unfortunate events like Bills hammy tightening up and a runner on the field threw us off a bit, but we had no business losing that game.

Tonight was just embarrassing, depressing, and dull. The biggest hole this team has is not its starting pitching, its right in the middle of their chest where their heart should be. I’m not sure if i can even get myself to watch tomorrow after expending so much energy at the ravine this week, but I’m now really curios to see how this team gets up for the big series in San Fran.

I know this is an overreaction, sort of my mini mid season crisis, but i really think someone needs to light a fire under these guys asses pretty soon. I mean maybe their not quite the team we thought they were early on in the season, but if we keep dilly dallying we’re gonna miss even getting a shot at the playoffs.

I think I feel a little edgy because this is the first team in my lifetime that I’ve really believed in, which probably means I’m setting myself up for a bigger let down, but i just want to be able to tell my kids someday what its like to watch the Dodgers play in the word series. [Cubs and Indians fans may now proceed to form an orchestra of the world’s smallest violins] : )

William Doolittle at your service, a.k.a. will do.

by Ollie on Aug 9, 2009 1:47 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I wonder if that team meeting the other day was the attempt at a fire-lighting moment.

by Eric Stephen on Aug 9, 2009 8:17 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

by the way, whatever happened to Tango and Shimmin?

didn’t those guys used to be the life blood of the game threads?

William Doolittle at your service, a.k.a. will do.

by Ollie on Aug 9, 2009 2:48 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Eric Stephen cut off Shimmin's head to gain his power.

by Tripon on Aug 9, 2009 2:57 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

haha, and Tango?

William Doolittle at your service, a.k.a. will do.

by Ollie on Aug 9, 2009 3:30 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kershaw leads the MAJORS in BAA

.196

That is sick.

by silverwidow on Aug 9, 2009 8:21 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

kershaws ERA this season

2.73
but the run support hes getting seems like close to nothing
the annoying thing about yesterdays game is they only made a full
effort to score in the 10th when they were down 0-2
plus 1 inning we had kemp on 3rd with no one out and we still couldnt score…
just arrrrrrrrrrrrgh
makes me want to tear a phone book in half