Rafael Furcal just keeps rolling, Clayton Kershaw keeps firing in Dodgers’ 3-2 victory over Cubs
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Rafael Furcal … superstar?
He is at the moment. He’s all-world, all-everything.
He can do no wrong. He can make bullet throws from second, beat out infield hits, steal bases and hit game-winning home runs.
With Clayton Kershaw lighting it up from the mound -- collecting a season-high 12 strikeouts -- Furcal carried the offense Thursday in the Dodgers’ 3-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
Randy Wells had been throwing a one-run gem for the Cubs when Russell Martin opened the seventh with a single, and after a sacrifice Furcal absolutely lined a two-run homer into the seats just inside the right-field foul pole.
Furcal, whose L.A. Dodger record of having scored a run in 12 consecutive games was snapped Wednesday, got quickly back to work Thursday.
He doubled into the right-center gap to open the bottom of the first. After Matt Kemp walked, Andre Ethier bounced sharply into a double play and it looked like Furcal might be stranded at third. [Corrected, 9:50 p.m.: An earlier version of this post said Russell Martin walked after Fucal’s double.]
But James Loney, bidding to become the Dodgers’ Mr. Consistency, lined a single off the glove of second baseman Ryan Theriot, scoring Furcal.
The Cubs tied it in a hurry, though, when Alfonso Soriano lined the first pitch he saw into the left-field seats next to the Dodgers’ bullpen for his 15th home run.
Chicago took a 2-1 lead in the fourth on a bloop double by Aramis Ramirez and Geovany Soto single.
The way Wells was throwing, the one-run lead threatened to hold up. Through six innings, he had checked the Dodgers on four hits.
But then came Furcal’s game-winning home run in the seventh. It was his sixth of the season.
Furcal went three for three. Since June 15, he is hitting .446 (33 for 74) with 22 runs scored.
He helped make a winner of Kershaw, who looked like he might be headed for a heart-breaking loss.
Kershaw (9-4) went eight sharp innings. Along with his 12 strikeouts, he did not walk a batter. He allowed seven hits.
-- Steve Dilbeck