LOS ANGELES – There was one positive development to emerge from the Dodgers' game Friday night.
They reduced their magic number for clinching the National League West title to four games, so with a little good fortune they can still celebrate at Dodger Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The rest wasn't so good.
Clayton Kershaw couldn't hold a 2-0 lead in the seventh inning, and the Dodgers dropped a 4-2 decision to the San Francisco Giants. Worse, outfielder Andre Ethier is likely to join teammate Hanley Ramirez on the bench for at least one game, maybe two.
Ethier aggravated an already sore left ankle while running out a double in the eighth inning and had to come out for a pinch runner. This came after an MRI on Ramirez showed an irritated nerve in his back that will sideline him through the weekend.
"It's just sore," Ethier said. "Hopefully, I'll get a good night's sleep and come in tomorrow and see if I'm ready to go."
The Dodgers can only hope so. It's more likely manager Don Mattingly will give him a night off. With the playoffs approaching, health will be critical, and at the moment, the Dodgers aren’t healthy.
While Ramirez is out and Ethier is iffy, center fielder Matt Kemp is continuing his rehab in Arizona from a sore hamstring. He began running in curves on Friday, so it's possible he could rejoin the team next when on its road trip.
Kershaw said he'd like to see the team clinch the division soon so regulars with aches and pains can begin to take time off. But that suggestion isn't one Ethier agrees with.
"We want to have the best record (in the National League)," he said. "We want to get home-field advantage. That's important."
The Diamondbacks' 7-5 loss to Colorado reduced the Dodgers' magic number to four, but they could have cut into it even more. They got a two-run homer from Juan Uribe in the sixth off Madison Bumgarner, but Kershaw gave up four consecutive singles in the seventh to give back the lead.
"It should've been three," Kershaw said, referring to the magic number. "It's unfortunate on my part, but hopefully we close it out pretty soon."
Kershaw took a three-hit shutout in the seventh before the Giants broke through on RBI singles by Joaquin Arias and Brett Pill.
"It was my fault," Kershaw said. "Against a good pitcher like Bumgarner, if you get two runs like that, you've got to make them hold up, and I didn't do that."
Kershaw began the night with a 3-0 record and 1.13 ERA against the Giants this season. He hadn't given up more than two runs to them since May 18, 2011, making 13 starts in that span.
But manager Don Mattingly had no complaints.
"That's the best he's thrown, for me, in probably three or four outings," he said. "They're got a good club. He's been able to shut this club down a lot, but no matter where they are in the standings, this is a championship club we’re playing over there. They're not going to fold up shop."
They didn't Friday night, but it doesn't mean the Dodgers can't still celebrate a division title before the end of the weekend.
