On an early October night in 2013, then-Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez stated the obvious beneath the Turner Field bleachers: “He’s the best pitcher in baseball and he showed it tonight.”
The 2013 Braves-Dodgers NLDS Game 1 was Clayton Kershaw’s first postseason statement, placing 2009 ghosts of giving up nine earned runs in three starts, including two NLCS losses to Philadelphia, firmly behind him with 12 strikeouts over seven innings. That was the Clayton Kershaw of old: Battering opposing batters into pulp with pinpoint control on a mid-90s fastball while mixing in plus off-speed offerings. That was not the Clayton Kershaw of Friday night — and it still didn’t matter.
The 2018 NLDS Game 2 was Kershaw’s latest postseason statement.
A dramatic turn of events in Hollywood pushed left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu, who pitched better than the future Hall of Famer down the stretch this season, into the first start of the series. Kershaw publicly disagreed with the move. It challenged his place in the pecking order, both in Los Angeles and baseball at large. In the age of prime deGrom or Sale or Scherzer, he’s no longer the sport’s unquestioned pitching alpha. But he’s still Clayton Kershaw.
Then Ryu spun a masterpiece against Atlanta in Game 1 and Kershaw, the best pitcher of his generation, took the ball then turned back the clock.
“We faced two guys that didn’t miss. They didn’t miss,” manager Brian Snitker said of Ryu and Kershaw. “They didn’t miss locations. They didn’t make any mistakes for two games, for 18 innings. It was two games that were about as pinpoint as you could be.”
Atlanta seen this show before.
Kershaw now owns a perfect 6-0 lifetime record against the Braves in the regular season and playoffs, and it’s not due to run support. He owns a 1.20 ERA in 90 career innings against Atlanta, striking out 99 batters with only 17 walks.
Aside from rookie phenom Ronald Acuña Jr.’s screaming leadoff double on the first pitch of Game 2, Snitker’s offense could not manage quality contact against the left-hander. He cruised through eight scoreless innings on 85 pitches. It was the longest start of his postseason career and the ball hardly left the infield.
The Braves have mustered nine hits with 15 strikeouts to open the series with back-to-back shutout losses, going 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position. Hitters have looked more impatient than aggressive. Dodgers pitchers (and manager Dave Roberts has barely touched his bullpen) have dictated the terms of engagement to the playoff newcomers.
The Dodgers are in full command of this series now: The 2-0 lead, the playoff experience, the extreme depth, the well-rested bullpen and, at the end of the day, the knowledge that a three-time Cy Young Award winner can still suspend space and time and remind the world why he’s heading to Cooperstown. He can still be the ace up Roberts’ sleeve even if he keeps him up there for an extra hand these days.
Los Angeles will send rookie star Walker Buehler, the team’s best pitcher this season and its standout performer in the tiebreaker win over Colorado, to the mound in Game 3 as the series flips to SunTrust Park. Dansby Swanson’s former Vanderbilt roommate held batters to a 2.62 ERA and 3.04 fielding-independent pitching, though he was much better at Dodger Stadium in his debut campaign. In his lone start against Atlanta, he allowed one run over 5 1/3 innings with four strikeouts and zero walks.
It’s difficult to imagine Buehler pitching better than Kershaw and Ryu did off Vin Scully Ave., but that may not matter with the way the Braves are hitting and how Dodger hitters keep express shipping mistakes to the outfield seats.
“It’s just not one guy. It’s a complete team thing right now as far as lack of offense,” Snitker said. “You can’t blame any one person. Our whole lineup’s having a hard time, struggling offensively right now.”
Jayne Kamin-Oncea
Credit: Fox Sports
via USAHint.com
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