The Los Angeles Dodgers have been one of the hottest teams in baseball since turning things around after a terrible start and now that they are 62-49, the team has a six game lead and firm hold of the National League West over the Arizona Diamondbacks as they head to St. Louis to start a series with the Cardinals.
The Dodgers will have their best pitcher on the mound in Clayton Kershaw and the team will be hoping for another strong start, just like what they got out of starter Zack Greinke the previous night, as he improved to 9-3 on the season with a 3-2 victory against the cardinals on Monday and now LA will try and keep that streak going as they face young starter Joe Kelly on the mound for the Cards, who is 2-3 with a 3.10 ERA on the year and will be looking to continue a hot stretch that has seen him go over 14 innings without giving up a run.
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The Dodgers should be a bit easier to face for Kelly on Monday as they are playing without star Hanley Ramirez, although Yasiel Puig is back in the lineup after sitting out on Sunday. Kelly got backed a bit against the Dodgers last season and he likely is thrilled that Ramirez is out, as he has been one of the best hitters in baseball over the past two months. Puig has been one of the main reasons why the dodgers have been so good and he is already hitting .500 with five runs scored in August, making another great start to another month.
The Dodgers have been fantastic on the road this year and are in the middle of a 15 game winning streak away from home and are now just two wins shy of the NL record with the NY Giants from 1916. LA has won 32 of 39 to get in control of the west and now it appears that it is a lock for the team to make the playoffs.
The Cardinals are in a tough battle for the NL Central with a 65-46 record and they are two games behind the best team in baseball in the Pittsburgh Pirates and the team is trying to gain ground as the calendar moves further into August. The Cards are one of the best offensive teams in the league and are ranked third in runs and second in batting average and they will try and snap their streak against a former Cy Young winner in Kershaw.
"I think we kind of thrive on an us-against-the-stadium mentality," catcher A.J. Ellis said. "It really brings out the best in ourselves."
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