'He did it again': Kershaw provides needed boost with another gem

ANAHEIM -- With the Dodgers mired in one of their worst month-long stretches in years, they’ve desperately needed someone to step up and play the role of stopper.

The Dodgers came into Angel Stadium on a three-game losing streak. They were 12-18 over their last 30 games. There have been plenty of questions surrounding the starting pitching and the bullpen.

On Tuesday, the Dodgers turned to Clayton Kershaw and he showed, once again, why he’ll likely be enjoying a speech in Cooperstown one day and watching his No. 22 jersey get retired at Dodger Stadium.

Kershaw was dominant over seven scoreless innings, striking out five and allowing five hits in the Dodgers’ 2-0 win over the Angels.

“He continues to do it, year in and year out,” said Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. “It’s absolutely incredible. When we needed him the most, he did it again. He’s been doing that for the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2008, and we needed him 15 years later to do it again.”

It’s now the fourth time this season that Kershaw has tossed seven or more scoreless innings in a start. Kershaw and Giants right-hander Alex Cobb are the first players age 35 or older to have four such starts in the first 75 games of a season since Mark Buehrle in 2014.

Kershaw has also enjoyed particular dominance at Angel Stadium, tossing 22 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to 2020.

“Our job every fifth day is the same -- try and get deep in the game and give our team a chance,” Kershaw said. “It was a good team win. Obviously, we needed it. Go on to tomorrow.”

Providing quality innings is a starter’s priority, and nobody has done it better over the years than Kershaw. This season alone, Kershaw leads the Dodgers in starts and innings and is the only man standing from the Opening Day rotation.

On Tuesday, Kershaw fought through some traffic but mostly kept the Angels off-balance. The biggest threat came in the seventh inning when Brandon Drury led off the frame with a single, which was followed by a Hunter Renfroe double to put runners on second and third with none out.

That’s when Kershaw took his greatness to the next level.

Kershaw proceeded to get Kevin Padlo to ground out to shortstop, keeping the go-ahead run 90 feet away. He then struck out Chad Wallach for the second out. After walking Luis Rengifo with two outs, Kershaw stayed calm and retired Andrew Velazquez to end the inning, stranding the bases loaded. That ended Kershaw’s night at 103 pitches.

“I think it’s hard for me to gain any more respect for Clayton,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “But given the state of our roster, certainly the pitching and now you layer in the starting pitcher. … For him to obviously realize that but accept the responsibility but not add pressure to himself -- it’s a skill. … I just can’t imagine where we’d be without him right now.”

Thanks to Kershaw’s performance, the Dodgers were able to wait out Angels left-hander Reid Detmers, who was just as brilliant over seven scoreless innings. In the eighth, Miguel Rojas got the rally started with a one-out double. Michael Busch followed with an RBI single, aided by the infield dirt as the ball took a wild hop over the head of Padlo at first base.

Will Smith, who also saved a run with his defense in the fourth inning after applying a nifty tag to nail Drury trying to score on a double, tacked on a second run to give the Dodgers some much-needed breathing room.

“I think we were desperate for something to go our way,” Smith said. “And it finally happened tonight.”

Over the recent rough stretch, the Dodgers have struggled to put together a clean game. On Tuesday, they played solid defense, didn’t make any mistakes on the bases and got timely hits when needed.

As has been the case for more than a decade, it all started with their legendary ace on the mound.

“He’s one of the best pitchers in the game and he’s never going to give in,” said Angels manager Phil Nevin. “And that’s why he’s going to the Hall of Fame.”