Freddie Freeman hit a home run, Clayton Kershaw went seven strong innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a six-game road trip with an 8-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday.
Freeman, who finished with three RBIs, joined Will Smith in belting back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning. Miguel Vargas also went deep as the Dodgers won for the 10th time in their last 12 games and went 4-2 on a trip that also included a stop at San Diego.
Kershaw (6-2) rebounded from a rocky start against the Padres on Friday by allowing one run on five hits with no walks and eight strikeouts. It was Kershaw’s third start of at least seven innings.
William Contreras hit a home run and Wade Miley had his worst start of the season for the Brewers, who lost for the eighth time in their past 10 games. Milwaukee has watched opponents score an average of 6.7 runs per game over their last six defeats.
The Brewers’ Christian Yelich went 0-for-3 against Kershaw after he entered with a career .474 batting average (9-for-19) versus the left-hander.
Miley (3-2) gave up seven runs on six hits over five innings with two walks and three strikeouts. It was just the second time Miley allowed at least seven earned runs in a start since the beginning of the 2020 season.
After Freeman and Smith each hit their sixth home runs of the season in the fourth, the Brewers pulled within a run at 2-1 on Contreras’ solo shot. Freeman added a two-run single in the fifth before the Dodgers put the game away with a four-run sixth inning.
Vargas’ fourth home run of the season put the Dodgers up 5-1, while David Peralta had a two-run pinch-hit single and Mookie Betts delivered a sacrifice fly for a run in the sixth.
–Field Level Media
