Steve Webb
DENVER, CO — Everybody who’s followed the Dodgers at all knows that Clayton Kershaw and Coors Field in Denver do NOT get along. Of all the ballparks that the lefty legend has pitched in, it’s been Coors that he hasn’t been able to solve. However, on Tuesday night, he was brilliant, pitching six scoreless and efficient innings, allowing just one single along the way to a 5-0 win over the Colorado Rockies.
However, after just 79 pitches, Kershaw was in his words “done,” and pulled himself from the game. It remains to be seen whether the early exit is due to some real physical issue or just the strain of the altitude, but it was the only blemish on an otherwise perfect start to the final road trip of the first half.
Offensively, it was J.D. Martinez who led the way. After the bottom of the order cashed in two runs early, Martinez smashed his 299th and 300th home runs in this one to give the Dodgers more than enough runs to win the game. The first homer was a two-run oppo taco that gave the Dodgers a 4-0 lead. Then, in the sixth, Martinez hit his milestone with a solo dinger to the pull side. This makes the second Dodger who’s gone over the 300 plateau this year, as Freddie Freeman accomplished the feat in May.
“It’s a blessing,” Martinez said on becoming the 156th member of the 300 club. “Honestly, from where I started, you know, with my whole story of getting released by Houston and getting the chance, an opportunity, with Detroit, and them believing in me. … At that time, I would have never guessed it. But it’s a blessing.”
But the story of the night was Clayton Kershaw. Even at 35, Kershaw is putting together one of his best seasons: 10-4 with a 2.44 ERA. In this one, it was only a walk and two-out single in the 6th from Brenton Doyle that mussed up his scorecard. And, oddly enough, both runners were eliminated on the bases. A double play erased the walk, and Kershaw picked off Doyle to end his night of work.
The only lingering question is Kershaw’s physical condition. If he pulled himself out of a game in which he was throwing a one-hit shut out, something must have been amiss. He wouldn’t get into specifics after the game, but did admit that he wasn’t feeling great.
“Let me get to [Wednesday] and figure everything out,” Kershaw said. “I’m not trying to be sneaky. I’m just trying to get through tomorrow and see where I’m at. Maybe there’s nothing to report. That’ll be good.”
Fingers crossed that it’s nothing serious. The good news, though, is that with Julio Urias slated to return this weekend, Clayton will have at least one extra day of rest before his next start, and then the All-Star break after that. But, thinking long-term, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if he just skipped a turn and came back at full strength in the second half of the season.
We shall see…
