Tag Archives: Clayton Kershaw

Sep 20

Game 151, 2023

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Tigers at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports Detroit, SPNLA

Rookie RHP Reese Olson (4-7, 4.30 ERA) pitches for Detroit and fellow rookie RHP Bobby Miller (10-3, 4.02 ERA) pitches for LA.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1907 At Exposition Park in Pittsburgh, Nick Maddox no-hits the Dodgers, 2-1. At the age of 20 years and ten months, the Pirates hurler becomes the youngest pitcher and the second rookie to throw a no-hitter.
  • 1911 Bill Bergen ends his major league career with the lowest lifetime batting average for a position player in major league history by hitting an anemic .170 during his 11-year tenure with the Reds and Superbas. The 33 year-old backstop, who had only one year of batting above .200, also holds the records for lowest season batting average for a regular season (.139 in 1909) and the longest streak of at-bats without a hit (46 in 1909).
  • 1954 The Giants clinch the pennant when they beat the Dodgers at Ebbets Field, 7-1. The National League champs, finishing the season five games ahead of second-place Brooklyn, will go on to sweep Cleveland in the Fall Classic.
  • 1959 The San Francisco Giants, bowing to the Dodgers, 8-2, play their last game at Seals Stadium. The transplanted New York team, who compiled a 163-145 record in their two-year stay in the former PCL park, will move to the newly constructed Candlestick Park next season.
  • 1961 In a 13-inning contest, Sandy Koufax goes the distance, beating the Cubs, 3-2, in the last regular season game to be played at the LA Memorial Coliseum, which was originally built for the 1932 Olympics. The Dodgers are leaving the only home they have known since moving from Brooklyn four seasons ago to play in a brand new stadium in Chavez Ravine, located a few miles from downtown Los Angeles.
  • 2011 Clayton Kershaw becomes the Dodgers’ first 20-game winner since Ramon Martinez accomplished the feat in 1990. Allowing just one run in 7 1/3 innings, the southpaw gets the victory when LA beats the visiting Giants, 2-1.
  • 2012 Washington secures a playoff spot when they beat the Dodgers at Nationals Park, 4-1. The last time there was postseason baseball in the nation’s capital occurred 79 years ago, when player-skipper Joe Cronin and the Senators lost to the Giants in five games in the 1933 World Series.

Lineups when available.

Sep 19

Game 150, 2023

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Tigers at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports Detroit, SPNLA

RHP Miguel Díaz (0-0, 0.00 ERA) makes his eighth appearance and second start of the season for the Tigers. By contrast, LHP Caleb Ferguson (7-3, 2.44 ERA) will make his fifth start and his 63rd appearance of the year for the Dodgers.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1935 The Cubs win their 16th consecutive game as they beat Carl Hubbell, completing a four-game sweep of the Giants. The mark is the most since the 1924 Dodgers won 15 straight games.
  • 1964 With two outs in the bottom of the 16th inning, Willie Davis, after singling, swiping second, and advancing to third on a wild pitch, steals home, giving the Dodgers a 4-3 victory over Philadelphia. The fleet outfielder’s theft of the plate is in the latest frame in a National League game the feat has ever been accomplished and ties Hal Trosky’s major league record set in 1944.
  • 1973 In the fourth inning of the Braves’ 4-1 loss at Dodger Stadium, Davey Johnson hits a solo shot off Andy Messersmith for his 43rd home run of the season, the 42nd as a second baseman. The round-tripper ties Cardinal infielder Rogers Hornsby’s 1922 record for the most home runs by a second baseman.
  • 1973 Astros’ infielder Dave Campbell hits a first-inning two-run double against San Diego right-hander Clay Kirby to snap an 0-for-45 drought, tying a major league record set in 1909 by Bill Bergen, a catcher who played with Brooklyn. ‘Soup’, who will become a respected national baseball broadcaster, endured the futility while playing for three teams, combining a 17 at-bat hitless streak with the Padres and another 21 at-bat hitless streak for the Cardinals before hitting the two-bagger in his eighth at-bat with Houston.
  • 2000 A Dodger fan, in addition to other court-ordered restrictions, has been banned from attending home games in Los Angeles for 18 months. The irate patron threw coffee in the face of a Mets fan who was cheering a grand slam hit by New York’s catcher Todd Pratt.
  • 2014 LA’s Clayton Kershaw becomes the first 20-game winner of the season when the team routs Chicago at a windy Wrigley Field, 14-5. The 26 year-old southpaw, who has compiled a 20-3 (.870) record along with an ERA of 1.80. is the first Dodger hurler to reach the 20-win plateau twice since Claude Osteen accomplished the feat in 1969 and 1972.

Lineups when available.

Sep 16

Game 147, 2023

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Dodgers at Mariners, 6:30 PM PDT, TV: RootNW, SPNLA

LHP Clayton Kershaw (12-4, 2.61 ERA) pitches for the Dodgers and RHP Bryce Miller (8-5, 4.05 ERA) does the same for the Mariners.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1924 Cardinal first baseman Sunny Jim Bottomley goes 6-for-6, including two homers, and bats in a record twelve runs when the team beats the Dodgers at Ebbets Field, 17-3. The previous mark of 11 RBIs in one game was established in 1892 by today’s opposing Dodger manager, Wilbert Robinson.
  • 1976 In the 11th inning at Veterans Stadium, Rick Joseph hits a walk-off grand slam in the Phillies’ 8-4 victory over the Dodgers. Two batters are walked intentionally by Ron Perranoski to face the weak hitting Philadelphia pinch hitter, who responds with his first career home run, which will be his only round-tripper this season.
  • 1988 The Reds’ Tom Browning pitches a perfect game against the Dodgers, striking out eight and allowing only eight balls to be hit out of the infield in his 1-0 victory. Over three starts, including the perfect game, he retires 40 consecutive batters – one shy of a major league record.

On September 16, 1993 Dave Winfield got his 3000th hit. In 1996 Paul Molitor did the same. And in 2005 Youppi!, who got his start at Olympic Stadium, is named as the first official mascot of the Montreal Canadiens, becoming the first to ever switch from Major League Baseball to the NHL. The acquisition, reportedly at the cost of six figures, is made possible when the Expos leave the hairy orange arm-waving giant behind in favor of an eagle called “Screech” when they moved to Washington, D.C. to become the Nationals.

Lineups when available.

Sep 11

Game 143, 2023

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Padres at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Padres: Catch the San Diego Padres now on NEW channels! Tune in on DirecTV (now channel 694-3), AT&T U-Verse (now channel 781), Cox (now Yurview channel 4), and Spectrum (now channel 305). Fans can now watch all Padres games in-market both LIVE and on demand during the 2023 season through an MLB.TV Single Team Padres subscription.

Dodgers: SPNLA

RHP Pedro Avila (1-2, 2.18 ERA) pitches for the visiting Padres and RHP Gavin Stone (1-0, 10.50 ERA) pitches for the Dodgers.

Here’s a free article from the NYT about all the other Dodger babies born this season. Five boys, one girl.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1947 Ralph Branca becomes the youngest pitcher to win twenty games in the National League. The 21-year-old Dodger right-hander, who finishes the season with 21 victories, reaches the plateau in his third attempt when Brooklyn beats the Cardinals at Sportsman’s Park, 4-3.
  • 1959 The Dodgers end Elroy Face’s consecutive win streak at 22 with a 5-4 victory over the Pirates. The reliever, who will end the season with an 18-1 record, is beaten by Chuck Churn, one of only three major league victories in his career.
  • 1966 In his first major league at-bat, John Miller homers off Lee Stange in the second inning of the Yankees’ 4-2 victory over Boston at Fenway Park. The 22 year-old left fielder, whose total of 10 hits in his 32-game career will include just two round-trippers, will become the only player to hit home runs in his first and last major league plate appearance when he goes deep as a pinch-hitter for the Dodgers in his final turn at bat in 1966.
  • 1998 Kevin Malone is named as the Dodgers’ general manager, replacing Tommy Lasorda, who is promoted to Senior Vice President of the team. The “new sheriff in town” tenure in Los Angeles will be marked by the signing of high profile players to huge contracts, including Kevin Brown’s seven-year deal making the right-hander the first $100 million man in baseball.

Lineups when available.

Sep 05

Game 137, 2023

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Dodgers at Marlins, 3:40 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports Florida, SPNLA

LHP Clayton Kershaw (12-4, 2.48 ERA) gets the ball from the Dodgers and LHP Jesús Luzardo (9-8, 3.62 ERA) does so for the Marlins.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1908 Superbas southpaw Nap Rucker strikes out 14 Doves en route to tossing a no-hitter in the team’s 6-0 victory over Boston at Washington Park. The only runners to get on base off the talented left-handed redhead come as a result of three Brooklyn errors.
  • 1938 For the third time this season, Dodger catcher Babe Phelps breaks a bone in his throwing hand. Although the injuries will limit his playing time to only 66 games and 208 at-bats this season, the southpaw-swinging backstop will hit .308 and was named to the National League All-Star team, the first of three consecutive games he’ll play in the Mid-summer classic.
  • 1955 In an 11-4 win over the Phillies, Dodger pitcher Don Newcombe hits his seventh homer, establishing a National League record for home runs by a pitcher in a season. The victory is Newk’s 20th of the season.
  • 1978 On a night the Dodgers and Angels are scheduled to play at home on the same date, which is a rare occurrence, each team has their game rained out, another oddity in Los Angeles. The second time both clubs’ home contests will be washed out on the same day in the City of Angels will take place late in the season in 1986.
  • 1998 Barry Bonds sets a new National League mark, reaching base in 15 consecutive plate appearances. The Giants outfielder’s five singles, two doubles, two homers, and six walks during the streak break Dodger Pedro Guerrero’s mark of 14 established in 1983.

Lineups when available.

Aug 30

Game 132, 2023

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Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Diamondbacks (see Game 130 post), MLBN (out-of-market only), SPNLA

RHP Brandon Pfaadt (1-6, 5.91 ERA) takes the hill for the DBacks and RHP Ryan Pepiot (0-0, 2.00 ERA) does so for the Dodgers.

Tony Gonsolin knew after undergoing an MRI test in mid-June that he had torn the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow, but the Dodgers right-hander continued to pitch to prop up an injury-depleted rotation, an effort that ended with Monday’s announcement that Gonsolin will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss next season.

“Kershaw was down at the time, Julio [Urías] was down, we had Bobby [Miller] and [Emmet] Sheehan called up from double-A, so I feel like I was pitching out of necessity,” Gonsolin said Tuesday. “I thought I could do it. It just got to the point where the stuff wasn’t performing. I was hoping I could make it through the season, put up good numbers and post. It didn’t work out.”

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1918 At the Polo Grounds, the Giants beat the Dodgers, 1-0, on an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth in a contest that takes only fifty-six minutes to complete. Pete Compton’s base hit off Jack Combs plates Larry Doyle, who had singled to lead off the frame and moved to third on Ollie O’Mara’s errant throw on a sacrifice bunt.
  • 1952 Nine-time All-Star infielder Arky Vaughan drowns with a friend when their boat capsized while fishing in a volcanic lake near Eagleville, CA. The former shortstop and third baseman, who compiled a .318 batting average and a .406 on-base percentage playing with the Pirates and Dodgers, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985.
  • 1966 Sandy Koufax, in his final decision facing the Mets, lasts only two innings, losing to Bob Friend at Shea Stadium, 10-4. The Dodgers Hall of Fame southpaw has compiled a 17-2 record against the lowly expansion team since their inception in 1962.
  • 2000 Earning his 1,600th victory, Braves’ manager Bobby Cox passes former Dodger skipper Tommy Lasorda on the career list for most managerial victories. His 5-2 victory over the Reds puts him 14th on the all-time list.
  • 2015 The NL’s eventual 2015 Cy Young Award recipient Jake Arrieta, needing just 116 pitches, beats Los Angeles, 2-0, tossing the 12th no-hitter ever thrown at the Chavez Ravine ballpark, and the 13th no-no in Cubs history. The contest marks the second time in ten games the Dodgers has been unable to get a hit; they were held hitless by Astros right-hander Mike Fiers on August 21.

Lineups when available.

Aug 29

Game 131, 2023

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Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Diamondbacks (see listings at prior game post), MLBN (out-of-market only), SPNLA

RHP Merrill Kelly (10-5, 2.97 ERA) pitches for the D-Backs and LHP Clayton Kershaw (11-4, 2.52 ERA) does so for the Dodgers.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1939 Wheaties sponsors the first telecast of a baseball game when their ads are aired during the Ebbets Field contest between the Reds and the Dodgers. The commercial broadcast is available only in New York City, where an estimated 500 people own television sets.
  • 1948 Jackie Robinson hits for the backward cycle when he homers in the first inning, triples in the fourth, doubles in the sixth, and completes the rare event with a single in the eighth. In addition to his ten total bases, the Dodger second baseman drives in two runs, scores three times, and steals a base, helping Brooklyn beat the Cardinals at Sportsman’s Park, 12-7.
  • 1951 With his second home run of the game, the sixth time he has accomplished the feat this year, Gil Hodges hits his 36th round-tripper to establish a new franchise record for homers in a season. The Dodger first baseman’s seventh-inning three-run blast in the team’s 13-1 rout of Cincinnati at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field surpasses the mark of 35 set by Babe Herman in 1930.
  • 1989 Giving up just three singles, recently acquired Mets southpaw Frank Viola outduels Orel Hershiser and beats the Dodgers, 1-0. The classic contest between two aces marked the first time in baseball history that the reigning winners of the Cy Young Award have faced one another in the regular season.

Cultural history note: On this date in 1966: On a typically cool night, the Beatles play their final concert at Candlestick Park, the home of the San Francisco Giants. The “Fab Four’s” performance on a five-foot stage, which is located just behind second base surrounded by a six-foot high wire fence, is less than stellar due the ballpark’s inadequate lighting, poor acoustics, and the group’s growing disdain of doing live shows.

Lineups when available.

Aug 23

Game 125, 2023

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Dodgers at Guardians, 4:10 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports Great Lakes, SPNLA

LHP Clayton Kershaw (11-4, 2.48 ERA) pitches for the Dodgers and RHP Xzavion Curry (3-1, 3.24 ERA) does likewise for the Guardians.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1958 Gil Hodges hits his 14th career grand slam in the Dodgers’ 10-1 victory over Milwaukee at LA Memorial Coliseum. The first baseman’s bases-full round-tripper establishes a new National League record, but is far fewer than Lou Gehrig’s major league mark of 23.
  • 1989 In the 11th frame of an eventual 22-inning 1-0 loss, the Expos’ Youppi! becomes the first mascot to be thrown out of a game when Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda complains to the umpires about the hairy orange giant’s behavior at Olympic Stadium. The L.A. skipper takes exception to the loud noise caused by the hairy creature’s running leap onto the visitors’ dugout before sneaking back into a front row seat.
  • 1989 In that same game, the second-longest shutout in big league history ends when Rick Dempsey hits a home run in the top of the 22nd inning, giving the Dodgers an eventual 1-0 victory over the Expos at Olympic Stadium. The Astros blanked the Mets for 24 frames en route to a 1-0 win at the Astrodome in 1968.
  • 2000 Team president Bob Graziano apologizes to a female couple who were asked to leave Dodger Stadium on August 8th because the two shared a kiss during a game. The pair felt the action of the eight security guards was discriminatory because the couple’s friends, a man and a woman, also kissed but were not ejected.
  • 2013 At a Dodger Stadium press conference, LA announces Vin Scully will continue to broadcast Dodgers’ games for his 65th consecutive season. Some of the historic moments the Hall of Fame broadcaster has called include Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series, 19 no-hitters, including four thrown by Sandy Koufax, Hank Aaron’s 715th home run, and Kirk Gibson’s dramatic walk-off home run in the 1988 Fall Classic.

Lineups when available.

Aug 17

Game 120, 2023

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Brewers at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports WI, MLBN (out-of-market only), SPNLA

RHP Corbin Burnes (9-6, 3.60 ERA) takes the hill for the Brewers. He’ll face the Dodgers’ RHP Lance Lynn (9-9, 5.88 ERA).

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1992 Kevin Gross, retiring 22 of the final 23 batters he faces on his wife’s birthday, no-hits the Giants at Dodger Stadium, 2-0. The LA right-hander’s no-no averts the team from being swept in a four-game series at home against the Giants for the first time in 69 years.
  • 2013 Clayton Kershaw blanks the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park, 5-0, giving the Dodgers their first double-digit winning streak since 2006. The team’s 42 victories in their last fifty games, including a 25-3 mark since the All-Star break, equals the 1941 Yankees and 1942 Cardinals for the best record for that span of games since 1900.

Lineups when available.

Aug 16

Game 119, 2023

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Brewers at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: Bally Sports Wisconsin, SPNLA

LHP Wade Miley (6-2, 2.90 ERA) pitches for the Brewers while LHP Clayton Kershaw (10-4, 2.51 ERA) does so for the Dodgers.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1950 At the Polo Grounds, Hank Thompson’s two inside-the-park home runs off Don Bankhead and Carl Erskine contribute to the Giants’ 16-7 drubbing of the Dodgers. The 24 year-old third baseman will hit 129 round-trippers in his 9-year career, three of which will be of the inside-the-park variety.
  • 1964 St. Louis outfielder Curt Flood collects eight consecutive hits during a doubleheader against Dodgers pitching. The Cardinals split the twin bill in Los Angeles, losing the opener to Sandy Koufax, 3-0, but take the nightcap when Curt Simmons tosses a six hitter to give the Redbirds a 4-0 victory.
  • 2020 Keibert Ruiz becomes the seventh player (there have now been eight — James Outman did it this season) in the 131-year history of the Dodgers to homer in his first major league at-bat and the first since Garey Ingram accomplished the feat in 1994. On his first swing, the 22-year-old Venezuelan catcher deposits Julio Teheran’s 1-1 fastball over the right-field fence in the team’s 8-3 victory at the Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

Babe Ruth died in New York City on this day in 1948.

Lineups when available.