True Blue LA - July 26: Dodgers 5, Giants 0Where The Dodger Dogs Are Always Grilledhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49563/truebluela_fav.png2014-07-26T21:08:07-07:00http://www.truebluela.com/rss/stream/57046642014-07-26T21:08:07-07:002014-07-26T21:08:07-07:00Kershaw 2-hitter puts Dodgers in first place
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_-jibcsXubrOdjtqfHUz8y9gFAM=/0x193:1377x1111/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/36120358/clayton-kershaw-shutout-072614-getty.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Dodgers clinched a series win on Saturday, snapping a skid of five straight series losses to the Giants.</p> <p><span>Clayton Kershaw</span> won his ninth straight decision on Saturday night, continuing his master of the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">Giants</a> with a two-hit shutout in the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>' 5-0 win at AT&T Park in San Francisco, vaulting Los Angeles into first place by a half-game in the National League West.</p>
<p>Kershaw allowed just two hits and a walk on Saturday, improving to 9-0 with a 0.94 ERA in his last 10 starts, allowing eight runs and eight walks during that span to go with 95 strikeouts.</p>
<p>He lowered his career ERA against the Giants to 1.40 in 23 games, including 22 starts. At AT&T Park it's even better, at 0.69 in 11 games, including 10 starts.</p>
<p>It was the fourth complete game and second shutout of the season for Kershaw, and ninth shutout of his career. Four of his nine shutouts have been against the Giants. He needed 113 pitches to finish his seventh scoreless start of the season, just the second time Kershaw has topped 110 pitches all season.</p>
<p>For a while, Giants starter <span>Ryan Vogelsong</span> matched zeroes with Kershaw, retiring the first 11 batters he faced. But with two outs in the fourth <span>Adrian Gonzalez</span> hit a ball to right field that would have normally been caught, only to drop as <span>Hunter Pence</span> lost the ball in the sun. The Dodgers cashed in their most gift-wrapped run of the season when <span>Hanley Ramirez</span> dropped a fly ball single well in front of glove-wearing spectator <span>Michael Morse</span> in left field for a 1-0 lead.</p>
<p>The Dodgers were able to tack on runs the rest of the way, including three straight singles in the fifth, an RBI double by <span>Juan Uribe</span> in the sixth, and an RBI single by Adrian Gonzalez in the seventh.</p>
<p>Gonzalez was 3-for-5 with two doubles on Saturday and since the All-Star break is 13-for-31 (.420) with five extra-base hits and eight RBI in eight games.</p>
<h5>Up next</h5>
<p><span>Hyun-jin Ryu</span> gets the call for the Dodgers in the series finale on Sunday, with former Dodger abuser <span>Jake Peavy</span> making his Giants debut trying to prevent the sweep on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball.</p>
<h5>Saturday particulars</h5>
<p><b>Home runs</b>: none</p>
<p><b>WP - Clayton Kershaw (12-2)</b>: 9 IP, 2 hits, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts</p>
<p><b>LP - Ryan Vogelsong (5-8)</b>: 6 IP, 8 hits, 4 runs (2 earned runs), 1 walk, 4 strikeouts</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2014/7/26/5941173/clayton-kershaw-2-hit-shutout-dodgers-giantsEric Stephen2014-07-26T13:18:47-07:002014-07-26T13:18:47-07:00Kershaw's fractional interest
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IFziNtnjQ3xNWwc_7phJG_hn8Hg=/0x0:4000x2667/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/36108256/20130707_pjc_se9_251.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A pair of fractions is all that separates <span>Clayton Kershaw</span> and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> from something very real on Saturday night against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">Giants</a>.</p>
<p>The Dodgers open play on Saturday a half-game behind the Giants in the National League West, meaning a win would vault them back into first place all alone for the first time since the All-Star break. It would also even their road trip at 4-4 with one game left to play.</p>
<p>For Kershaw, who has led the major leagues in ERA for three straight seasons, his 1.92 ERA does not lead the majors this season. With 103⅓ innings through 104 team games, Kershaw falls just short of the necessary one inning per game to qualify for league leadership. But barring injury, that dance on and off the leaderboard ends after Saturday's start.</p>
<div class="pullquote">2.007 <span>-Clayton Kershaw's ERA over his last 100 starts</span>
</div>
<p>Kershaw, making his 200th appearance and 198th career start on Saturday, has allowed eight runs in his last nine starts, with 88 strikeouts and seven walks during that span. He has won his last eight decisions, two shy of the longest winning streak of his career. Kershaw was 10-0 during a 14-start stretch from the end of 2011 into 2012, with a 1.22 ERA, 92 strikeouts and 16 walks in 96 innings during that span.</p>
<p>In his career Kershaw has gaudy numbers against the Giants, with a 1.48 career ERA in 23 games against them, including 22 starts, and a 0.78 ERA at AT&T Park. But in his last two starts against San Francisco Kershaw has allowed three runs both times, two of only four times he has allowed more than two runs in a game to the Giants.</p>
<p>Kershaw has lasted at least seven innings in each of his last nine starts against the Giants, dating back to 2012, and in 13 of his last 14 against them, dating back to 2011.</p>
<p><span>Ryan Vogelsong</span> starts for the Giants, making his fourth start against the Dodgers this season. After allowing four runs in four innings in the Dodgers' home opener on April 4, failing to last five innings, Vogelsong has allowed one run in each of his last two starts against Los Angeles, both no-decisions but both Giants wins.</p>
<h5>Roster moves</h5>
<p>The Giants placed catcher <span>Hector Sanchez</span> on the seven-day disabled list with a concussion suffered in Friday night's game. The club purchased the contract of catcher <span>Andrew Susac</span>, hitting .268/.379/.451 with 10 home runs in 63 games with Triple-A Fresno. Susac, San Francisco's second-round pick in 2011, was rated the Giants' third-best prospect in Baseball America's midseason rankings and rated between the No. 55 and No. 67 prospect in baseball by four BA prospect editors.</p>
<p>San Francisco also acquired <span>Jake Peavy</span> and cash — about $3 million of his remaining $5.15 million salary, <a target="_blank" href="http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268750/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=jXlMwtpi">per the Associated Press</a> — from Boston for minor league pitchers <span>Edwin Escobar</span> and <span>Heath Hembree</span>. Peavy, who was 1-9 with 4.72 ERA in 20 starts with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.overthemonster.com/">Red Sox</a>, will start the series finale for the Giants on Sunday night.</p>
<p>Peavy in his career is 14-2 with a 2.21 ERA in 25 starts against the Dodgers, though just one of those starts have come in the last five seasons, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.truebluela.com/2013/8/25/4658446/red-sox-dodgers-jake-peavy-home-runs">a complete-game win at Dodger Stadium last August 25</a>.</p>
<h5>Game info</h5>
<p>Time: 6:05 p.m. PT</p>
<p>TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2014/7/26/5940181/clayton-kershaw-fractionsEric Stephen2014-07-24T15:00:03-07:002014-07-24T15:00:03-07:00Dodgers sending Big 3 to mound this weekend in SF
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8T_maqyHTWrGmbG2JKNGR6AzJUc=/0x110:4000x2777/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/35997296/20130503_kdl_ax5_109.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> open a three-game weekend series against the first-place <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">Giants</a> on Friday night at AT&T Park, looking to turn things around after a bad start to their nine-game road trip. The Dodgers have lost all three series against San Francisco so far this season, dropping seven of 10 games.</p>
<p>On paper the Dodgers have an advantage in the starting pitching matchups this weekend in San Francisco, but we saw how good that advantage worked out last weekend in St. Louis. Here are the pitching details for the three games up north.</p>
<h5>Friday, 7:15 p.m. PT (SportsNet LA)</h5>
<p><span>Zack Greinke</span> has two of the Dodgers' three wins against the Giants this season, allowing two runs in both starts with 16 strikeouts and three walks in 13 innings. <span>Tim Lincecum</span> has a 0.95 ERA in his last six games, including five starts and a two-out save on his throw day on Tuesday in Philadelphia, with 31 strikeouts and 12 walks in 38 innings.</p>
<h5>Saturday, 6:05 p.m. (SportsNet LA, MLB Network)</h5>
<p><span>Clayton Kershaw</span> is 6-2 with a 0.78 ERA in 10 career games at AT&T Park, including nine starts. <span>Ryan Vogelsong</span> put up a 2.92 ERA in a hard-luck four-start losing streak, thanks to the Giants scoring one total run in those games. But in his last start the Giants scored seven runs in Vogelsong's start, but he allowed 11 hits and four runs and was done after three innings.</p>
<h5>Sunday: 5:07 p.m. (ESPN)</h5>
<p><span>Hyun-jin Ryu</span> is 3-1 with a 2.36 ERA in four starts in San Francisco, with 14 strikeouts and seven walks in 26... innings, compared to 0-2 with a 4.80 ERA in three home starts against the Giants, with nine strikeouts and seven walks in 15 innings. Since getting dropped from the rotation at the end of May, <span>Yusmeiro Petit</span> put up a 2.00 ERA in 11 relief appearances, with 23 strikeouts and five walks in 18 innings out of the bullpen. In his first start back in the rotation, in place of the injured <span>Matt Cain</span>, Petit allowed five runs in five innings to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Phillies</a> on Tuesday.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2014/7/24/5932359/dodgers-giants-schedule-starting-pitchersEric Stephen