Clayton Kershaw turned in another encouraging outing even if his fastball hovered around 90 mph, and J.D. Martinez carried the Los Angeles Dodgers offense to a 7-0 win over the San Francisco Giants.
With their win the Dodgers clinched a first-round bye and spot in the National League Division Series. They conceivably could still catch the Atlanta Braves for the best record in the NL but appear likely to remain in on the other side of the postseason bracket as the No. 2 seed.
Martinez led off the second inning with his 31st home run of the season and added a two-run double in the third that extended the Dodgers’ lead to 3-0.
Freddie Freeman added to his pursuit of 60 doubles this season by hitting his 57th two-bagger, which brought a run in, and Max Muncy followed with an RBI single.
The Dodgers then broke the game open in the seventh inning behind a two-run double from Mookie Betts. That gave Betts 105 RBI on the season, an MLB record for most out of the leadoff spot.
The record previously belonged to Charlie Blackmon, who had 103 RBI as a leadoff hitter in 2017.
As the Dodgers generated run support throughout the night, Kershaw largely avoided trouble as he held the Giants to just two hits and two walks over five scoreless innings. He collected five strikeouts in the process and was aided by David Peralta making a sliding catch to end the fifth inning.
Joe Kelly retired the side in order in the sixth and Michael Grove followed with two innings in his return off the 15-day injured list. Caleb Ferguson entered in the ninth to finish out the win.
Kershaw was credited with the 210th win of his career to move into second place all-time in Dodgers franchise history. He had been tied with Don Drysdale.
Dodgers hosting NLDS games
The Dodgers are due to host Game 1 of the NLDS on Saturday, October 7, and Game 2 two days later. If necessary, NLDS Game 5 would played at Dodger Stadium on October 14.
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