Kyle Taylor, Valdosta Today Sports
LOS ANGELES – Tuesday night brought back some bad memories for Braves fans of the 2013 NLDS against the Dodgers.
Clayton Kershaw (2-3) had his way with the Braves in that series and did the same in game two of the series between the Dodgers and Braves on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium.
Julio Teheran (4-1) got the call for Atlanta, in what would be a battle of two aces. The problem for Teheran and the Braves so far this season has been the consistency of their often reliable ace.
There was a lot of talk before the game whether Alberto Callaspo was, or was not, being dealt to the Dodgers in a trade that would send Juan Uribe to the Braves. With the two teams playing one another, one could imagine the confusion between the players about which clubhouse their jerseys and cleats were located.
Since Callaspo signed as a free agent this offseason, he has the right to decline a trade before a June 15th deadline. Initially, Callaspo decided it was best suited for him to decline a deal and see what would happen in free agency. It was heard around the league by reporters, such as Ken Rosenthal, that the veteran preferred not to play on the west coast.
That was until the Braves third baseman had a change of heart and decided to accept a deal to the Dodgers in a six-player deal that sent Juan Uribe and Chris Withrow to Atlanta in exchange for Callaspo, Ian Thomas, Juan Jaimie, and Eric Stults.
It is unsure how the Braves will use Uribe, who plays more like an everyday player than a utility guy, when Chris Johnson returns from his rehab assignment.
With all the trade discussions happening during the game last night, there were no distractions on the Dodgers side as they defeated the Braves by a score of 8-0.
Kershaw was perfect through four innings and finished seven innings with ten strikeouts, no runs, and giving up only four hits.
His counterpart, however, did not have a good performance on a nationally televised game. Julio Teheran never had his good stuff in the game and gave up eight runs on ten hits in 4 1/3 innings, including Adrian Gonzalez’s tenth home run of the season.
Teheran told AJC.com, “I’m trying to learn from it and do my best to pass through it and work hard to get back where I want to be like the past two years.”
With Freddie Freeman striking out four times, it was clear that the Braves were not prepared to take on the reigning Cy Young and MVP winner on Tuesday.
Jonny Gomes got the start against the lefty and told MLB.com, “[Kershaw] is obviously a well-decorated ace, and that is why we saw a bunch of pitches off him and battled. Guys like that, the top three or four guys in the league, when they’re on, they’re on.”
Gomes also went hitless in four at-bats and struck out twice.
The Braves will try to salvage a game in the final matchup between the teams of the series on Wednesday night, with Alex Wood (2-2) making his first start since May 16th after being scratched last week because of a stomach flu.
It will not get any easier for Braves hitters as they will go up against Zack Greinke (5-1), who has posted a 1.48 ERA in nine starts for the Dodgers. It is likely that Juan Uribe will be inserted into the starting lineup to face his former teammate. First pitch will be thrown at 10:10 PM ET from Dodger Stadium.
