The Sports Xchange
Jun 3, 2017
MILWAUKEE -- Cody Bellinger led off the 12th inning with a solo home run against Neftali Feliz as the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a 2-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night at Miller Park.
Clayton Kershaw struck out 14 batters, setting a season high and just one off his career best of 15 while holding Milwaukee to one walk and two hits in seven innings. Kershaw reached 2,000 strikeouts in 1,837 2/3 career innings, which is the third-fastest in MLB history behind Pedro Martinez (1,715 1/3) and Randy Johnson (1,734), according to the Dodgers.
But he stood in line to lose for the first time in six career starts at Milwaukee because one of those hits was a solo home run by Domingo Santana and the Dodgers' offense was ineffective against Brewers right-hander Jimmy Nelson.
Nelson went eight innings -- the longest outing by a Brewers starter this season -- and struck out a season high 11 batters while holding the Dodgers scoreless on five hits without a walk.
Jacob Barnes and Carlos Torres kept the Dodgers off the board in the 10th and 11th, but Bellinger connected on a 1-2 fastball from Feliz (1-5) to give Los Angeles its first lead of the night.
After allowing a leadoff double to Keon Broxton and a walk to Eric Thames in the first inning, Kershaw had retired 20 consecutive batters when he left a 1-0 fastball over the plate just enough for Domingo Santana to send it to center for his ninth home run of the season.
Nelson, meanwhile, ran into trouble of his own in the eighth. Yasiel Puig led off with a single to right field and Brett Eibner followed with a base hit to left.
Second baseman Jonathan Villar bobbled what would have been a double-play ball from pinch-hitter Chris Taylor, so instead of two outs and a runner on third, Nelson faced leadoff batter Logan Forsythe with one out and runners on the corners.
Villar redeemed himself, though, cleaning scooping Forsythe's chopper and flipping it to shortstop Orlando Arcia, who turned the double play to get Nelson out of it.
Arcia opened the eighth with a double off Pedro Baez, who gave Thames a free pass with two out and escaped unscathed by striking out Jesus Aguilar.
Corey Knebel struck out Corey Seager to open the ninth but missed his mark on a 3-1 fastball to Yasmani Grandal, who dropped it in the right field stands for his sixth homer of the season, tying the score at 1.
Things quickly got worse as Adrian Gonzalez doubled to put the go-ahead run on base. Knebel intentionally walked Bellinger and Puig, loading the bases for Eibner, who struck out to end the inning.
Milwaukee put the go-ahead run on base in the ninth against Baez, but Villar struck out for the fourth time of the night, sending the game to extras.
NOTES: Brewers OF Ryan Braun ran on an anti-gravity treadmill Monday for the first time since returning to the disabled list, but there is still no timetable for his return, manager Craig Counsell said. ... Dodgers pitchers struck out 26 batters, setting a franchise record. ... Milwaukee RHP Jimmy Nelson became the first pitcher in franchise history to strike out 10 or more without walking a batter in consecutive starts.