Corbin shuts down Dodgers again in Nationals' 6-0 victory
LOS ANGELES (AP) — No matter which uniform he’s wearing, Patrick Corbin knows he has a good thing going against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
He’s also savvy enough not to shout about it.
The left-hander said plenty with his pitches Thursday night as he shut down the Dodgers’ powerful lineup again, pitching the Washington Nationals to a 6-0 victory in the opener of a four-game series.
Corbin fired seven smooth innings and Howie Kendrick hit a three-run homer in the first as the Nationals ended a four-game slide and stopped the Dodgers’ 10-game home winning streak.
“I just felt really good today, with everything,” Corbin said. “I’ve just faced these guys quite a bit and they can do some damage. I’m just trying to make quality pitches. The slider was on all day. I was able to get ahead of guys and there were a couple big double plays that they turned behind me to get me out of a couple jams.”
Corbin entered with a 3.59 career ERA against the Dodgers, but posted a 0.77 mark in four starts last year with Arizona. In two outings at Los Angeles last season, he gave up one earned run over 10 innings with 14 strikeouts.
The Dodgers had just one legitimate scoring chance against Corbin this time, loading the bases with one out in the fourth on a single by David Freese and walks to Cody Bellinger and Corey Seager. Chris Taylor grounded into a double play to end the inning.
Freese had two of the three hits against Corbin (2-1), who walked four and struck out eight. Max Muncy fanned four times for the Dodgers and left five runners on base.
“You have to give credit to Corbin,” Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said. “We have seen him a lot and he has had his way with a lot of our hitters. He gets righties, lefties out, gets ahead, and that slider — we really didn’t see it well.”
The only team with more wins at home than the Dodgers is the Brewers, who just swept a three-game series from the Nationals in Milwaukee. Washington dropped Los Angeles to 15-5 in its own park as the Dodgers lost at home for the first time since April 13. They were beaten 4-1 that day by the Brewers.
Dodgers starter Rich Hill (0-1) got off to a slow start in his third outing after opening the season on the injured list because of a sprained knee. Adam Eaton led off the game with a double and Anthony Rendon was hit by a pitch with one out.
Kendrick ripped his sixth home run over the left field wall against Hill, who already has been taken deep five times in three starts.
Hill followed with four scoreless innings, but the damage was already done.
“I think getting away from my game plan was frustrating,” he said. “I think one bad pitch on my part was the cutter in (that hit) Rendon. I had a situation to put him away, and not sticking with my strength is frustrating.”
The Nationals added two more runs in the eighth against reliever Dylan Floro, as Kendrick had an RBI single and Yan Gomes drove in a run with a fielder’s choice. Rendon knocked in another run in the ninth on a fielder’s choice.
The Dodgers were shut out at home for the first time this season. It was just the second time they were held under three runs at Chavez Ravine.
Washington won the first meeting of the season after going 1-5 against Los Angeles last year.
“That was good baseball,” manager Dave Martinez said. “We turned some double plays, which was really nice. We did all the little things, ran the bases well. Let’s enjoy the victory today. Starting today, 1-0, come back tomorrow and do it again.”
EARLY STRUGGLES
After three starts, Hill has given up 10 of his 11 runs in the first two innings, although the Dodgers won’t make an issue of the pattern just yet.
“I know that if you look back at the last couple of years, there was something similar to that where we sort of changed his regimen to combat that,” Roberts said. “I really haven’t dug into Rich’s pregame routine and the cause of that. I still think his intensity and intent is there.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Nationals: OF Andrew Stevenson was placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to Tuesday, with back spasms. That opened a roster spot for veteran outfielder Gerardo Parra, who was signed to a one-year deal.
Dodgers: LHP Tony Cingrani (shoulder) will take one more step in his minor league rehab assignment and pitch in back-to-back games before he is activated. … LHP Caleb Ferguson (oblique) is expected to pitch in a rehab game this weekend for Class A Rancho Cucamonga.
UP NEXT
Nationals: RHP Anibal Sanchez (0-5, 5.15 ERA) looks to end a four-start losing streak when he takes the mound at Dodger Stadium, where he has a 1.65 ERA in three starts.
Dodgers: RHP Kenta Maeda (3-2, 4.66) makes his first regular-season start against the Nationals, although he did start against them in the 2016 NL Division Series, when he was the losing pitcher in Game 3.
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