Kershaw has off night in Dodgers’ 4-2 loss to Marlins, falls to 2-3

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Face it, you’re spoiled. By results and expectations.

When Clayton Kershaw pitches, everything seems possible. Even if he is still growing, still developing, still but 23 years old.

Kershaw took to the mound Tuesday in Florida and seemed on top of this game. Through five innings, he had given up only two hits, though one was a solo home run by Marlins first baseman Gaby Sanchez.

The Marlins added a run in the fourth and it was a 2-2 tie entering the sixth. Andre Ethier extended his career-high hitting streak to 23 games, best ever for the month of April, by doubling in the Dodgers’ first run.

But in the sixth Kershaw suddenly began to labor, the strike zone just out of his reach, the stuff just not quite as effective.

He was finally undone by a full count, bases-loaded, two-run single by Mike Stanton in the sixth to leave the Marlins with a 4-2 victory. Five of the six Marlins Kershaw faced in the sixth reached base. When he walked John Buck to again load the bases, his night was over.

In his 5 1/3 innings, Kershaw gave up four runs, six hits and two walks. He struck out five and saw his ERA go to 3.52 and record to 2-3.

Not terrible numbers, certainly, but not the kind that chase Cy Young awards. Not the kind that meet the lofty expectations placed on the young left-hander.

In the sixth, he gave up a leadoff single to Chris Coghlan and got Omar Infante on a fly for his only out of the inning.

Then he kept falling behind to hitters, giving up a single to Hanley Ramirez and walking Sanchez to load the bases. Kershaw got up 0-2 on Stanton, but throwing nothing but fastballs, finally saw one lined into center to drive in the winning runs.

The Dodgers scored their second run against Chris Volstad in the fourth after rookie Jerry Sands doubled high off the center-field wall. He went to third on a single by James Loney -- who entered the game with a miserable .170 batting average and ended up going four for four. Sands scored on a sacrifice fly by Rod Barajas.

-- Steve Dilbeck