Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Blake DeWitt's two-run single in the third inning proved to be the difference, as the Los Angeles Dodgers held off the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-3, to complete a three-game series sweep.
Dodgers Strike Early, Ride Stellar Clayton Kershaw To Sweep Of Cardinals
Manny Ramirez hit a two-run homer for the Dodgers, who completed their fifth series sweep of the season and their first sweep of the Cardinals in Los Angeles since June 4-6, 1988. The Dodgers also improved to 8-2 on a season- long 13-game homestand, which concludes with a three-game set against the Angels starting Friday.
Clayton Kershaw (6-3) went seven innings in the start, allowing three runs on four hits. He also fanned a season-high 10 batters and walked two. The left- hander has won five of his last seven decisions.
“I felt good. The pitch to (Ryan) Ludwick I’d like to have back. But anytime you get four runs off (Adam) Wainwright you have to make it hold up,” Kershaw said.
Ryan Ludwick smacked a three-run homer for St. Louis, which has lost four in a row for the first time since a five-game slide from June 5-9 of last season.
Adam Wainwright (8-4), coming off his first-career shutout last Friday against Milwaukee, gave up four runs on eight hits in six frames to take the loss. He also struck out six and walked five.
“I was behind counts a lot and they have some great hitters over there,” Wainwright said.
Ramirez's two-run blast in the first put the Dodgers on the board after Andre Ethier hit a two-out double and Los Angeles scored twice more in the third to build a 4-0 lead.
Ramirez walked and James Loney singled, both runners advanced a base on Casey Blake's sacrifice bunt and DeWitt followed with a two-run base hit to right.
St. Louis finally got to Kershaw in the fourth. Aaron Miles singled and Matt Holliday walked to put men on first and second with one out. Ludwick stepped to the plate and blasted a 2-2 slider over the wall in left field to cut the gap to 4-3.
The Dodgers had a chance to add to their lead in the seventh. With Jason Motte on the mound, Ramirez walked and Loney singled down the right-field line to put men on the corners. Blake hit a grounder to second baseman Skip Schumaker, who threw home and Yadier Molina tagged out Ramirez for the first out. DeWitt struck out and Russell Martin grounded out to end the threat.
Jonathan Broxton came on to close things out in the ninth and Albert Pujols led off with a single. Broxton, though, retired the next two batters. Yadier Molina made things interesting with a ground-rule double to right-center field, but Randy Winn grounded out to give Broxton his 16th save of the year.
Los Angeles is 23-7 since May 8 to go from last place in the NL West to first, a game ahead of the Padres...St. Louis won five of seven versus LA in the regular season last year...Wainwright fell to 2-3 lifetime against the Dodgers...Kershaw improved to 2-0 in five regular-season starts versus St. Louis...The Dodgers left 10 men on base, while the Cardinals stranded just four...Loney went 4-for-4.
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