The San Diego Padres took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but Opening Day at Dodger Stadium went heavily in Clayton Kershaw’s and Los Angeles Dodgers’ favor once it was all said and done. Kershaw’s franchise-tying seventh Opening Day start was another outing without an earned run allowed.
Corey Seager’s throwing error in the first inning was cashed in when Yangervis Solarte got an RBI single by a drawn-in infield. Jhoulys Chacin retired the side in order in the bottom of the second, but couldn’t keep the Dodgers off the board int he second inning.
Adrian Gonzalez hit a leadoff double, Logan Forsythe singled, and Joc Pederson’s sacrifice fly tied the game. Yasiel Puig was the Dodgers’ first recipient of an intentional walk that no longer requires pitches to be thrown.
Kershaw completed a 1-2-3 third inning, ending it by striking out Wil Myers looking. Justin Turner doubled with two outs in the bottom of the third, sparking a rally. After Gonzalez was intentionally walked, Forsythe was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Pederson then turned on a 3-1 fastball to hit a line-drive grand slam to right field. Pederson’s grand slam was the Dodgers’ first on Opening Day since Eric Karros slugged one on the road against the Montreal Expos in 2000.
What’s more, Pederson’s five RBI to that point were the most by a Dodger in a season opener since Raul Mondesi had six RBI in 1999. Kershaw and Andrew Toles combined for back-to-back singles with nobody out in the fourth.
Kershaw scored on Turner’s double, which knocked Chacin out of the game. Christian Bethancourt, the Padres’ catcher/utility outfielder/reliever extraordinaire, made his 2017 debut. Bethancourt immediately threw a wild pitch that allowed Toles to score.
Puig’s first hit of the season was a one-out double in the fifth inning. Seager later connected for a three-run homer, his first hit of the season, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 12-1. Kershaw, meanwhile, continued to mow his way through the Padres lineup.
He retired 19 batters in a row, including six by strikeout, after allowing the RBI single to Solarte. His string without allowing a baserunner was snapped with two outs in the seventh inning when Ryan Schimpf connected on a first-pitch fastball for a solo home run.
Kershaw bounced back to end the inning with a strikeout, his eighth of the game. The Dodgers’ left-handed ace was removed after seven innings. He threw 84 pitches, allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits.
Chris Hatcher allowed a two-out single, followed by an RBI double, before getting through the eighth inning. Grandal hit a two-run homer in the eighth, and the Dodgers went on for a 14-3 victory. The Dodgers’ four home runs on Opening Day set a franchise record.
