Gio Gonzalez tries to stretch his scoreless innings steak this afternoon when the Washington Nationals attempt to salvage the finale of their three-game set with the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.
Gonzalez won his second straight start on Tuesday in San Diego, as he scattered two hits over six scoreless innings to run his record to 2-0 to go along with a 1.52 earned run average.
He has not allowed a run in his last three starts, spanning 20 innings.
"You saw a good, live fastball, and a good, hard breaking ball," Padres manager Bud Black said after the game. "And his changeup was better than advertised. He pitches aggressively."
The Dodgers spoiled phenom Bryce Harper's big league debut on Saturday, as Matt Kemp's major league-leading 11th home run of the year in the 10th inning carried Los Angeles to a 4-3 win.
The Dodgers had scored twice in the ninth to tie the game, and Kemp won it when he drilled a low, 1-2 fastball over the center field wall for the win.
"We're having fun right now," said Kemp, who broke Gary Sheffield's team record for most home runs in April. "It took everybody to get this win tonight. I got the pitch I wanted to hit, a fastball over the middle and I hit it hard."
Chad Billingsley gave up just one run on five hits over seven innings while Jamey Wright (1-0) got the win for a flawless 10th inning.
"I was proud of the guys for bouncing back in the ninth," said Dodgers manager Don Mattingly. "To scratch out a win against those guys is showing that our guys are playing together. It's fun to watch Kemp, you see him getting better and better."
Harper, the top pick of the 2010 draft, drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the ninth and hit a double in the seventh for the Nationals, who have dropped three straight. Stephen Strasburg went seven innings and gave up one run on five hits over seven innings. Tom Gorzelanny (1-1) was handed the loss.
Now the Nats will try to salvage this afternoon's finale against Chris Capuano, who was terrific his last time out. The veteran lefty beat the Atlanta Braves on Monday, holding them to a run and six hits in seven innings to run his record to 2-0, while lowering his ERA to 3.52.
Capuano has faced the Nats six times and is 2-3 with a 4.35 ERA.
Los Angles won four of its six meetings with Washington last season. The Nationals are also 5-17 at Dodger Stadium since relocating from Montreal in 2005. That season also was the last time the franchise won a series at Chavez Ravine.
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