LA to showcase latest lefty ace
11:08 PM CDT on Wednesday, October 14, 2009
When they are at their postseason best, the Los Angeles Dodgers have always had a dominant left-handed starter to anchor their rotation. Sandy Koufax springs to mind. So does Fernando Valenzuela. And now the next generation: Highland Park's Clayton Kershaw?
Yes, at only 21, Kershaw will start Game 1 of the NLCS tonight and with good reason. Since the start of summer, Kershaw has been as overwhelming as any lefty in the game (and, yeah, I'm looking at you CC Sabathia). Counting his 6 2/3 strong innings against St. Louis in the Division Series, he has a 1.92 ERA since June 21, and he's allowed hitters a .198 batting average while striking out more than twice (118) the number he has walked (50).
Kershaw got just enough of a hint of playoff baseball last year to avert the jitters; now he may be ready to assert himself. His two starts, and those to be made by Chad Billingsley and, yes, Rangers ex-pat Vicente Padilla, should give the Dodgers the edge in this series.
Prediction: Dodgers do their part to set up the Freeway Series, win the NL in six games.