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PCL1 Oklahoma City Comets

Kershaw Opens 2019 Season for OKC Dodgers

April 5, 2019 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Oklahoma City Comets News Release


Oklahoma City - Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw pitched 4.1 innings for the Oklahoma City Dodgers on a Major League rehab assignment and Kyle Garlick hit a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, but the San Antonio Missions hung on to win their Pacific Coast League debut Thursday night, 5-3, in the season opener for both teams at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

The score remained tied, 2-2, until San Antonio pinch-hitter Jake Hager hit a two-run triple to center field in the top of the ninth inning to give the Missions a 4-2 advantage. The Missions added another run when Hager scored on a wild pitch by Dodgers pitcher Justin Grimm later in the frame for a three-run lead. The Dodgers were then unable to complete a comeback in the bottom of the ninth inning despite Garlick's solo shot.

Kershaw pitched in a game for the first time in 2019 while recovering from shoulder soreness that sent him to the 10-day Injured List to begin the Los Angeles Dodgers' season.

The seven-time MLB All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award-winner and 2014 National League Most Valuable Player threw 61 pitches Thursday for Oklahoma City, including 42 strikes in front of a sellout crowd of 12, 472. He allowed two runs on four hits with two walks and six strikeouts, including striking out the side in the third inning.

In the first inning, he walked the leadoff batter Corey Ray on nine pitches, then later picked him off first base as part of a scoreless frame with one strikeout.

The Mission's Tyrone Taylor hit the first pitch of the second inning down the left field line for a solo homer to put PCL newcomer San Antonio in front, 1-0. Jacob Nottingham added a RBI single later in the frame for a 2-0 Missions lead.

Kershaw faced one batter in the top of the fifth inning before exiting the game to a standing ovation and being replaced on the mound by Oklahoma City reliever Joe Broussard.

The Dodgers later evened up the score, 2-2, in the bottom of the sixth inning on a RBI single by Matt Beaty and RBI double by Edwin RÃ-os.

On the mound, Grimm (0-1) took the loss for the Dodgers, allowing three runs on three hits in the ninth inning.

Missions reliever Deolis Guerra (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth inning and got the win, while Josh Fields picked up the save.

The Missions are in their first PCL season as the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers following the relocation of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox franchise. The Missions previously played in the Double-A Texas League most recently from 1968-2018 and served as a San Diego Padres affiliate from 2007-2018.

With Thursday's loss, OKC fell to 10-12 overall in season openers since joining the PCL in 1998 and 8-14 in home openers at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.

The five-game series between the teams continues at 7:05 p.m. Friday. The first INTEGRIS "Home Run For Life" of the season will take place after the completion of the third inning and fireworks, presented by True Sky Credit Union, are scheduled to follow the game.

Tickets are available through the OKC Dodgers ticket office located on South Mickey Mantle Drive, by phone at (405) 218-2182, or by visiting okcdodgers.com.

Live radio coverage of each game begins 15 minutes before first pitch on AM 1340 "The Game," 1340thegame.com and through the free iHeartRadio or MiLB First Pitch apps.

Video highlights of today's game are available at the PCL FTP site, pacificcoastleague.exavault.com, in the Oklahoma City folder. The proper files will reflect today's date, and are accompanied by a text file containing a brief description of the content available.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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