The Dodgers had a 14-hit, 10-run attack while Chad Billingsley held the Padres to one run for the win in the first game of the series.
The Dodgers gave themselves a nice cushion, scoring six runs in the first inning for an early lead. Kemp and Martin led off with base hits, being switched atop the lineup, before Manny drove them home with a two-run double. Two batters later, Nomar blasted a three-run homerun to make it 5-0 before Billingsley chipped in with an RBI on a squeeze play. He then helped himself out by driving in another run in the third on an RBI-single. Blake DeWitt, who started at second base, then drove a three-run shot in the fifth to cap the scoring.
Billingsley earned his 16th win while driving in more runs than he gave up. His only run allowed was a two-out RBI-single in the second. He left after six with five K’s before McDonald, Troncoso, and Elbert each tossed a shutout inning apiece.
The magic number is three, and Clayton Kershaw gets the chance to lower that number tomorrow. Kershaw is looking to pick up his fifth win while facing lefty Shawn Estes, who is 2-3 with a 4.73 ERA.
