One night after the Los Angeles Dodgers need assistance from the Miami Marlins to get a win, they were firing on all cylinders early but needed to come back for a 10-6 victory after squandering a lead. The win was their 39th at Dodger Stadium, good for the best home record.
Kershaw began the night by striking out the side in the first inning, and Joc Pederson opened the scoring with his fifth leadoff home run of the season. Both Kershaw and Pederson set the tone for what lied ahead.
Austin Barnes doubled in two runs in the fourth inning and Kershaw helped his cause with an RBI single. The Dodgers added to their lead in the fifth behind Justin Turner’s solo home run and Max Muncy’s opposite-field RBI double.
That was more than enough for Kershaw, who only could be stopped by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. He appeared to do some convincing in the dugout upon informing Kershaw his night was coming to an end after 97 pitches and a season-high 10 strikeouts over six shutout innings.
Kershaw was perfect into the fourth inning before failing to make a play on a tapper hit in front of the plate. His throw went wide of first base, resulting in a single for Martin Prado. Garrett Cooper followed with a more routine base hit to take the sting away from losing a potential perfect game.
Those were the only two hits the Marlins mustered off Kershaw. He remained undefeated at Dodger Stadium and turned in a 17th quality start in as many outings this season. Moreover, it was the fifth time in Kershaw’s career he tossed a scoreless outing with at least 10 strikeouts while also contributing an RBI base hit.
Although Kershaw made matters look easy, the Dodgers bullpen endured familiar struggles. Starlin Castro hit a home run off JT Chargois in the seventh inning, and the Marlins proceeded to load the bases in the eighth.
Caleb Ferguson’s struggles continued as Curtis Granderson doubled and Yadiel Rivera walked to load the bases. Jorge Alfaro’s drive to deep right field nearly went for a grand slam, but he instead settled for a sacrifice fly.
Yimi Garcia didn’t fare much better, as he allowed a two-run double and saw the Marlins score two more runs to tie the game on a potential double-play that Kiké Hernandez threw away to first base.
Matt Beaty bailed the bullpen out with a go-ahead three-run home run into the pavilion in right field. The home run was Beaty’s fifth of the season and third in three games since being recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Beaty’s exhilarating moment was capped off by a curtain call once he got back to the dugout.
