Many in baseball know that the Dodgers fan base travels well regardless of the ballpark or the distance involved. Such was the case on Saturday morning for the first game of a doubleheader at Chicago’s historic Wrigley Field. The first game of the three-game series against the Cubs was originally scheduled for Friday night, but was postponed due to heavy rain in ‘The Windy City.’

Future Hall of Famer and Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was initially set to pitch Game-2 of the weekend series, but with the weather-induced schedule change, he would instead pitch Game-1 of what would now be a Saturday doubleheader, with 32-year-old Dodgers left-hander Tyler Anderson, who was supposed to pitch the series opener on Friday night, starting the nightcap. The idea, of course, was to keep Kershaw on his normal rotation, with Anderson – who has both started and relieved for the Dodgers this season – being a bit more versatile.

It worked.

Despite being 2,023 miles from Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles logos, jerseys, and hats were abound at the historical ballpark. Fans who made the long journey (or short trip for Dodgers fans living closer to Wrigley Field) were rewarded with yet another Cy-Young-Award-ish performance by the Dallas TX native and 15-year Dodgers veteran.

In his seven innings of work, his longest outing on the season, Kershaw allowed no runs and only five hits while walking one and striking out two on 81 total pitches. The Dodgers offense, in turn, rewarded their ace by scoring seven unanswered runs to make Kershaw a perfect 4-0 on the season while lowering his ERA to a Kershaw-like 1.80

In a postgame interview with SportsNet LA’s Kirsten Watson, Kershaw discussed what was working well for him during his outing.

“Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good,” Kershaw said with a chuckle. “Those first couple innings they hit a lot of balls hard right at guys. The wind was swirling, pushing the ball in a little bit. [Dodgers outfielder Cody Bellinger] made some great plays out there in center.”

It is always a good thing when the pitching and offense are firing on all cylinders, but even more so during a doubleheader. Despite the added rest from a canceled game, it can still be tiresome to later play one game after another. The ever-humble Kershaw shared his perspective on how he could help his team stay on point for Game-2.

“Overall, it’s just the same approach. You try to go as long as you can, no matter what, but obviously, it’s a little more important with a doubleheader. Thankful to get through seven there. I think we’re set up well for the next one.”

Kershaw definitely set his team up for the best scenario possible. Tyler Anderson and the Dodgers also took Game-2 of the twin bill by a score of 6-2 to put Anderson at 3-0 on the season with an impressive 2.78 ERA.

Let’s go Dodgers!

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