Dodgers superstar Clayton Kershaw spent 40 days on the disabled list dealing with a back injury. He returned on Friday night to face the Padres at Petco Park with a strict 75-pitch limit.
For Clayton Kershaw, that's enough to win a baseball game.
The best lefty in the game was ruthlessly efficient in a 1-0 Dodgers win, striking out seven Padres in 6.0 innings without a walk. The only two hits he gave up were both on the infield. Kershaw only threw 70 pitches, 53 of them for strikes.
But rookie right-hander Dinelson Lamet gave the Padres a chance. The youngster struck out the side in both the 4th and the 5th against a darn good lineup and finished with 10 punchouts in 6.0 innings. However, he flinched just once.
In the 6th inning the Dodgers put two runners on with two outs and Chase Utley … who made his MLB debut when Lamet was 10 years old … singled with two strikes to bring in Justin Turner with the only run of the game.
Los Angeles snaps its 5-game losing streak to start the 4-game series. To make up for a rainout earlier in the season we get to see a rare doubleheader in the East Village on Saturday. Game 1 starts at 12:40 with Clayton Richard on the mound against Brock Stewart. The nightcap starts at 7:10 when Jordan Lyles gets the start against Yu Darvish.
