Jimmy Rollins, SS
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Scott Van Slyke, LF
Yasiel Puig, RF
Yasmani Grandal, C
Alex Guerrero, 3B
Kiké Hernandez, CF
Zack Greinke, P
By Jon Weisman
After delaying his scheduled Wednesday start because of a sore hip, Clayton Kershaw threw a bullpen session Thursday and was pronounced fit.
But with the luxury of having Zack Greinke available on four days’ rest tonight, the Dodgers are giving Kershaw one more day of rest before bringing him back the mound Saturday.
Greinke will be starting for the first time since Sunday, when his 45 2/3-inning scoreless streak ended. The third batter he faces will be Angels star Mike Trout, who himself missed time this week with a sore wrist. The two faced each other July 14 in the first inning of the All-Star Game, when Trout hit a leadoff home run.
Kershaw and Greinke have a chance, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, to become the teammates with the lowest ERA in a calendar month ever. The record is 0.49 by Orel Hershiser and Tim Belcher in (surprise) September 1988. Greinke basically needs to pitch shutout ball, because even if he allows only one run in a complete game, the duo’s ERA would rise to 0.50.
Southern California’s other 23-year-old center fielder, Joc Pederson, is resting tonight, and Don Mattingly said that Pederson might sit out one or two more games this weekend to get him some rest and allow him to regroup mentally from a July in which he has had a .488 OPS. Mattingly made clear that it was not a punitive benching.
oldbrooklynfan
Good idea to rest Joc.