Padres rough up Kershaw while Cease holds Dodgers in check in San Diego’s 8-1 win

SAN DIEGO (AP) - San Diego’s Dylan Cease held the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers in check in his first start after throwing his first career no-hitter and Clayton Kershaw lasted only 3 2/3 innings in his second start of the season as the Padres won 8-1 Wednesday night for a two-game sweep.

Kershaw made his 2024 debut on Thursday after having offseason shoulder surgery. The 36-year-old lefty had a solid outing against San Francisco then but had a shaky performance at Petco Park, as did the rest of the Dodgers, who committed three errors and had just three hits.

All-Star Jurickson Profar had two RBI singles and Luis Campusano had a homer and RBI single for the Padres, who won for the ninth time in 11 games since the All-Star break.

Kershaw (0-1) was pulled with one out in the fourth after Xander Bogaerts hit a sacrifice fly. The 17-year veteran allowed seven runs - just three earned - with no strikeouts and one walk.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Kershaw’s streak of 423 regular-season starts with at least one strikeout had been the longest since the mound was moved to its current distance in 1893.

The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner and 2014 MVP committed one of the Dodgers’ three errors, with second baseman Gavin Lux committing the other two. Kershaw booted Bryce Johnson’s bunt in the second, making three of the four Padres’ runs that inning unearned.

Four straight Padres batters reached with one out and all scored. Campusano and Profar had RBI singles, Luis Arraez had an RBI groundout and a run scored on Kershaw’s error.

The Padres scored three more in the fourth. Campusano homered to left with one out. Johnson singled, Arraez reached on Lux’s second error, Profar hit his second RBI single and Bogaerts hit a sac fly to chase Kershaw.

Cease (11-8) won his fourth straight start by holding the Dodgers to one run and three hits in 5 2/3 innings while striking out six and walking three. He got a nice ovation as manager Mike Shildt came out to remove him after he struck out Teoscar Hernández.

Cease threw his first career no-hitter and the second in Padres’ history in a 3-0 win at Washington on Thursday.

The Dodgers broke through in the third but a heads-up play by third baseman Manny Machado kept the damage to just one run.

Nick Ahmed hit a two-out single and Shohei Ohtani walked. Lux doubled into the right field corner and Ahmed scored. Ohtani was held up at third but broke for home when he saw the relay throw from right fielder Johnson going over the cutoff man’s head. Machado alertly fielded it and flipped the ball home to get Ohtani.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: Haven’t named a starter for Friday night’s series opener at Oakland. Manager Dave Roberts said RHP Jack Flaherty, obtained from Detroit on Tuesday, will start Saturday.

Padres: Haven’t named a starter for Friday night’s series opener at home against Colorado. LHP Martín Pérez, acquired from Pittsburgh, likely will start sometime during that series, manager Mike Shildt said.

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