The Los Angeles Dodgers dropped both games of their final split-squad doubleheader of the spring on Sunday, as the San Diego Padres defeated them 2-1 at Camelback Ranch and the Milwaukee Brewers came away with a 7-3 victory in Maryvale.
The Dodgers have now lost five straight Cactus League games, although it wasn’t all bad as ace Clayton Kershaw started the home game and looked like his normal self. He tossed five shutout innings, allowed just five hits, all of which were singles, while striking out eight and not issuing a walk.
This spring has been an outstanding one for Kershaw, even for someone with as high of standards as the three-time Cy Young Award winner. He has now thrown 14.2 shutout innings in Cactus League play, giving up 11 hits while striking out 19 and walking four.
Kershaw threw 70 pitches in the outing against the Padres, and then another simulated inning in the bullpen to continue to build up his pitch count. He will throw six innings and around 90 pitches in his final spring tuneup on Friday against the Kansas City Royals.
Kershaw provided the only Dodgers offense at Camelback Ranch, as in his second at-bat he launched a two-out double into the right-center field gap to score Kiké Hernandez, putting an exclamation mark on an impressive day of work.
#KershGonnaKersh pic.twitter.com/8UHb1Byxfd
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 18, 2018
As for the game in Maryvale, the Dodgers offense did get going early. They scored three runs in the first two innings, only to be held scoreless the rest of the game.
Edwin Rios showed off his natural power for the Dodgers’ third run, as he hit a towering home run to straightaway center field that went over the batter’s eye. That marked the second time he hit a home run of that caliber this week.
