With the way Clayton Kershaw is playing this season, most have already penciled him in as the Cy Young winner for the National League. It only seems appropriate with his stat numbers and sheer dominance this season that take the honor home. Kershaw has already won two Cy Young awards in the last three years and considering he is 13-2 with a 1.71 ERA and looking to become the first Dodgers pitcher to win 11 straight decisions in over 29 years. Facing the league's best young hitter in Mike Trout might make that difficult.
The Dodgers pitcher currently has the best ERA in the league while being tied with five others for the best record. In the past 10 starts, Kershaw is undefeated with a 0.94 ERA. The last player to win 11 starts for the Dodgers was Orel Hershiser in 1985. In this stretch, Kershaw has five complete games. In his last start, he got a 2-1 win over the Atlanta Braves just after shutting out the San Francisco Giants. Against the Angels, Kershaw is 2-2 with a 3.74 ERA in five starts. However, his last match was a loss on the road.
Kershaw's success can be summed up by a strong arm and run support, plenty of run support. However, in their past four games since Kershaw pitched, they have batted just .207 with 10 runs while losing three of the games. Los Angeles is currently leading the National League West by a game and a half over the Giants so getting a solid win against the Angels would be nice.
The Angels will start Hector Santiago who is 3-7 with a 3.76 ERA. He is taking the place of Tyler Skaggs who is on the disabled list after straining his left arm. Santiago has trouble getting past the sixth innings, putting pressure on the team's bullpen. He is coming off a win against the Baltimore Orioles where he pitched two scoreless innings of relief.