Clayton Kershaw will have a tough act to follow when he takes the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers as they go for the sweep of the visiting Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night.
Hyun-Jin Ryu shut out the Braves on four hits in a 9-0 win on Tuesday night, the first by a Dodgers pitcher since Kershaw fired a two-hitter in a 2-0 victory against the Cincinnati Reds on May 23, 2016.
Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner set the bar high on Tuesday, as well, finishing with three home runs and six RBI, both career highs.
Turner had one home run in 34 games coming into Tuesday.
"The timing has felt good," Turner told reporters afterward. "I think I've been swinging at good pitches all along, just missing the good ones to hit."
Kershaw has a number of trends he'd like to continue.
The Dodgers are unbeaten with Kershaw as their starting pitcher this season, and the left-hander has never lost to the Braves in his career.
He has made 10 previous starts against Atlanta in the regular season and owns a 4-0 mark and 1.43 ERA. He's also defeated the Braves in both postseason meetings, most recently throwing eight shutout innings in a 3-0 win in Game 2 of the National League Division Series last October.
Kershaw (1-0, 2.77 ERA) has pitched well enough to earn a win in all four starts this season, lasting at least six innings and allowing three runs or fewer in each outing. He most recently went six innings at the San Diego Padres on Friday, allowing three runs on six hits but failing to get the decision in the 4-3 win.
The Braves plan to send Mike Foltynewicz to the mound.
Foltynewicz (0-1, 5.06 ERA) tied with the fifth-best ERA in the National League last year at 2.85, but has a long way to get near that number this season.
Foltynewicz, who started two games against the Dodgers in the NLDS last season, missed the first month of the season with elbow problems.
He allowed four runs and six hits in six innings in his season debut against the Colorado Rockies on April 27, and then took a step back in his last outing, allowing six runs (two earned) and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings against the Padres on Thursday.
Foltynewicz made three of his four career starts against the Dodgers last season, the final two in the NLDS.
He started Game 1 and allowed four runs, three hits and three walks in two innings of the 6-0 loss. He returned to start Game 4 and allowed one run and two hits in four innings and departed with the Braves leading 2-1, but the Dodgers rallied for a 6-2 victory to win the five-game series.
The Braves had to dip into their bullpen sooner than expected Tuesday night after starting pitcher Max Fried was hit in his throwing hand by a comebacker to start the second inning. Atlanta only had to use four relievers, however, thanks to four quality innings form Josh Tomlin.
"We've got a number of guys who can pitch, so we should be all right," Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said of his bullpen situation heading into Wednesday.
--Field Level Media