Kershaw: Short outings 'frustrating,' 'disappointing'

ST. LOUIS -- With a starting rotation in flux and low on innings recently, the Dodgers were hoping for a vintage Clayton Kershaw start on Sunday.

Instead, the left-hander struggled for the second straight time and Los Angeles lost to the Cardinals, 10-5, dropping three of the four games in the series.

The loss snapped a streak of six straight series that the Dodgers had won going back to April 27. Los Angeles is 16-6 since the streak began.

“It's nothing specific, just haven’t been pitching well,” Kershaw said. “So frustrating. Not a great time with guys going down, obviously [I’d] like to get some length. So disappointing [to] feel like you let the guys down, especially the bullpen.”

Kershaw had his shortest outing of the season, lasting just 3 2/3 innings and allowing four runs. He gave up five hits, walked three and struck out six.

This comes on the heels of Kershaw going only four innings against the Twins on Tuesday. It marks the two shortest back-to-back starts for Kershaw since Sept. 25, 2021 (4 1/3 innings), and Oct. 1, 2021, when he left the second game with an elbow injury after just 1 2/3 innings.

“I just thought today the stuff wasn't there,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think the fastball velocity was down. Even the slider velocity was as low as I've seen it all year. And then you layer in not having command. It's a tough combo.”

It marks the fifth time in the last seven games that a Dodgers starter didn’t pitch into the fifth inning.

“It's kind of the ebbs and flows of pitching,” Roberts said. “Sometimes, the starter is going to pick up the guys in the ‘pen and other times, it works the other way. And right now, we're in one of those things where starters aren’t going deep, and I think you've got to give credit to this Cardinals team. One through nine, those guys take really good at-bats, and they grind you, they get the pitch count up.”

Óscar Mercado delivered a two-run double in the second and a run-scoring single in the fourth against Kershaw, then added a two-run single off Justin Bruihl in the fifth. Paul DeJong put the game out of reach with a three-run homer in the seventh off Wander Suero.

“The stuff before [the Mercado at-bats] is what's unacceptable,” Kershaw said. “Two-out walks, letting things fester instead of being able to get three outs quickly.”

Roberts announced after the game that Kershaw will be away from the club for the next few days to attend a memorial service for his mother. Kershaw is still on schedule to start at Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Roberts said Kershaw mentioned feeling some fatigue after his previous outing, but said health-wise he is fine. Roberts said the last two starts have taken an emotional toll on Kershaw as he has also been dealing with the passing of his mother.

“When you're talking about fatigue, there's no one that works harder or prepares himself more,” Roberts said. “He probably doesn't want to admit it, but sometimes, the emotional toll takes a toll on your body, too, so I'm sure it plays some factor.”