Dodgers at Rockies
Clayton Kershaw looks to defeat Colorado for the 20th time in his career when the Los Angeles Dodgers visit the Rockies for the second contest of their four-game series on Friday. Kershaw is 19-6 with a 3.15 ERA in 34 career starts against Colorado and has split two decisions this season, with the loss occurring at Coors Field on April 8.
Kershaw served up three homers in that setback, allowing back-to-back shots for the first time in his career when Mark Reynolds and Gerardo Parra both went deep in the sixth inning. The Dodgers had their season-high five-game winning streak halted in Thursday's opener as they gave up the first 10 runs of the contest en route to a 10-7 loss. The victory was the seventh in nine games for Colorado, which is off to the best 36-game start in franchise history. Carlos Gonzalez, who entered the series with only seven RBIs, went 2-for-4 and drove in a season-high three runs on Thursday to raise his sagging batting average to .198.
TV: 8:40 p.m. ET, MLB Network, SportsNet LA (Los Angeles), ROOT (Colorado)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Dodgers LH Clayton Kershaw (5-2, 2.40 ERA) vs. Rockies RH Tyler Chatwood (3-4, 4.74)
Kershaw defeated San Diego in his last start as he struck out nine in 7 1/3 innings while giving up just one run and five hits. He uncharacteristically walked four batters after issuing just three free passes over his first six starts. Kershaw, who is 8-4 with a 4.71 ERA in 18 career starts at Coors Field, has shut down Ian Desmond (3-for-29) and Reynolds (5-for-28, one homer).
Chatwood is coming off a stellar outing against Arizona in which he allowed one run and two hits over seven-plus innings of a 5-2 victory. It was a sharp turnaround from his previous three turns as he surrendered 14 runs and 19 hits in 16 1/3 frames during the stretch. Chatwood is 4-6 with a 3.52 ERA in 11 career starts versus the Dodgers but just 1-4 with a 6.48 ERA in five outings against them at Coors Field.
WALK-OFFS
1. Rockies 3B Nolan Arenado went 3-for-4 with two RBIs on Thursday and is 10-for-25 during his six-game hitting streak.
2. Los Angeles activated LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu (hip), who took the loss Thursday, and placed RHP Kenta Maeda (hamstring) on the 10-day disabled list.
3. Colorado placed SS Trevor Story (shoulder) on the 10-day DL and recalled RHP Jeff Hoffman, who started Thursday and picked up his first major-league win.