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Dodgers-Giants Preview

Aug 1, 2010 - 1:10 AM By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO STATS Writer

Los Angeles (54-49) at San Francisco (59-45), 8:05 p.m. EDT

Clayton Kershaw is ready to put a five-game suspension behind him. Doing it against the San Francisco Giants might be an issue.

A day after the Los Angeles Dodgers made a pair of trades to bolster their playoff hopes, Kershaw returns from his ban looking to help them avoid a three-game series sweep to the Giants on Sunday night.

Kershaw (10-5, 2.96 ERA) was ejected in the seventh inning of a 7-5 loss to San Francisco (60-45) on July 20 after plate umpire Adrian Johnson deemed he deliberately hit Aaron Rowand after plunking Andres Torres in the first.

Kershaw, who had allowed two earned runs with six strikeouts in six-plus innings, was then suspended for five games, while manager Joe Torre and bench coach Bob Schaefer were issued one-game bans.

The 22-year-old Kershaw is hoping to move on from the incident, but insists he won't alter his approach.

"If they warn me before the game not to pitch inside, I'm still going to pitch my game," Kershaw told the team's official website. "It's over now, the situation's done with and it won't come up again."

He didn't appear fazed by the looming suspension in most recent outing last Sunday, scattering seven hits over eight innings of a 1-0 win over New York, improving to 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA in five starts.

The Dodgers (54-50) could use another strong effort as they try to end a four-game slide, which continued with Saturday's 2-1 loss. Closer Jonathan Broxton served up a two-run homer to Pat Burrell in the eighth.

Kershaw has no record and a 1.71 ERA in four games - three starts - against San Francisco.

With a rotation boasting Kershaw and All-Star Chad Billingsley, Los Angeles acquired left-hander Ted Lilly in a deal with Chicago prior to Saturday's trade deadline. The deal also included infielder Ryan Theriot joining the Dodgers, while second baseman Blake DeWitt moves to the Cubs with two minor leaguers.

Third in the NL West, Los Angeles also added to its bullpen by acquiring Octavio Dotel from Pittsburgh for reliever James McDonald and a minor league outfielder.

Dotel is 2-2 with a 4.28 ERA in 41 appearances.

Lilly could make his Los Angeles debut as soon as Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium against the first-place San Diego Padres, while Theriot - hitting .284 with one homer and 21 RBIs - will be the starting second baseman.

"It's definitely going to improve us," Billingsley said of Lilly. "He's had a successful career and any little thing helps now. We've still got two months to go. We just have to get the ball rolling."

Matt Cain (8-8, 3.14) takes the mound looking for his first win versus the Dodgers. The right-hander is 0-8 with a 4.32 ERA in 14 starts against them, including six defeats in eight meetings at AT&T Park.

His streak at home continued June 29, when he allowed four runs in five innings of a 4-2 defeat.

Cain, though, enters this meeting with some momentum, going 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA in three starts. He turned in another strong effort Tuesday, allowing three runs and four hits with six strikeouts in seven innings while not getting a decision in a 6-4 win over Florida.

The Giants, second in the West, have won four of five against Los Angeles, and are in position for their first home sweep of their archrivals since taking all four games from June 21-24, 2004.

San Francisco added left-handed reliever Javier Lopez from the Pirates in a three-player deal Saturday. He's 2-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 50 appearances.