Ohtani hits 39th homer and Kershaw pitches Dodgers to 2-1 win over slumping Cardinals

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August 19,atlético madrid vs las palmas 2024 at 11:40 JST

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Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the St. Louis Cardinals in the fifth inning at Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri, Aug 18, 2024. (USA TODAY Sports via REUTERS)

ST. LOUIS--Shohei Ohtani hit his National League-leading 39th home run and Clayton Kershaw tossed six shutout innings to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.

Miguel Rojas and Gavin Lux had three hits apiece as the NL West leaders won for the seventh time in 10 games.

“Every time I play defense behind (Kershaw), you know you’re playing defense behind a first-ballot Hall of Famer,” Lux said.

Lars Nootbaar provided a pinch-hit homer in the eighth for the Cardinals, who have lost six of seven.

Ohtani drilled a first-pitch offering from Sonny Gray over the wall in the fifth to break a scoreless tie. Rojas added a run-scoring single later in the inning.

Kershaw (2-2) allowed four hits and struck out two. The three-time Cy Young Award winner threw 70 pitches in his fifth start since undergoing shoulder surgery in November. It was the longest outing of the year by innings for the left-hander, who made his season debut on July 25.

“I got a lot of groundballs that kept the pitch count down,” Kershaw said. “It gave us what we needed today.”

Kershaw displayed some flashes of his old form. He said he feels better now than he has in a long time.

“I don’t even remember what it felt like to not have my shoulder hurt,” Kershaw said. “It’s nice to wake up and everything feels good. It’s a good feeling.”

It was his first scoreless start since Sept. 23, 2023, when he pitched five shutout innings against the Giants.

“He stepped up and did what he always seems to do,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He commanded the fastball on both sides of the plate.”

Michael Kopech picked up his 11th save and second for the Dodgers with a scoreless ninth. He got Nolan Arenado to hit into a game-ending double play.

The Dodgers took two of three in the series to finish a 4-3 trip. They split four games at NL Central-leading Milwaukee.

“It’s good for us that we have to play under pressure,” Rojas said. “It going to be beneficial for us going down the stretch. We need to win games like this.”

Gray (11-8) gave up two runs and seven hits over five innings. He struck out six.

“There’s still a lot of time left,” said Nootbaar, who had his second career pinch-hit homer. “We kind of hold the future in our own hands in terms of that we play a lot of games against our division still left.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Dodgers: 1B Freddie Freeman sat out after taking a grounder off his middle finger in Saturday’s game. X-rays were negative and he is day-to-day, but Roberts thinks Freeman might be sidelined at least a few more days. “I can’t see him playing (Monday),” Roberts said.

Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn is expected to throw batting practice on Tuesday. He was placed on the 15-day injured list July 31 with right knee soreness.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: RHP Gavin Stone (10-5, 3.63 ERA) faces Seattle RHP Bryan Woo (5-1, 2.06) in the opener of a three-game series Monday in Los Angeles.

Cardinals: RHP Erick Fedde (8-6, 3.40 ERA) pitches against Milwaukee RHP Frankie Montas (5-8, 4.86) on Tuesday in St. Louis. Fedde was acquired in a three-team trade from the Chicago White Sox on July 29.