MIAMI -- Zack Greinke is modest to a fault anyway, so you just had to know he wasn’t going to take the proverbial bait when asked to compare his current season to the success teammate Clayton Kershaw enjoyed last year.
Kershaw led the league in wins (21-3), ERA (1.77), complete games (six) and WHIP (0.857), winning the National League Cy Young and Most Valuable Player awards.
Greinke beat the Miami Marlins 2-0 on Saturday, ending a nine-start streak in which he had pitched exceptionally well but had not gotten a victory -- two losses and seven no-decisions. He is now 6-2 with the best ERA among major league starters (1.58).
“My [season] has been very average compared to his,” Greinke said. “[Kershaw] would go eight innings every start and strike out eight-plus. Mine has been a little bit of luck and a little bit of skill.”
When Greinke was reminded that he has allowed one run or less in 12 of his 16 starts, he shrugged.
“Well, it’s in between average and what he did last year,” Greinke said, drawing giggles from the media.
Greinke held the Marlins to four hits and one walk, extending his streak to 20 2/3 innings without allowing a run. His career best streak was 24 innings in 2009 with Kansas City.
He left Sunday’s game after 7 2/3 innings and 101 pitches despite having no one on base. Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said the 101 pitches were not as big a factor as that it would have been Greinke’s fourth time through the lineup, and he would have had, potentially, two straight tough left-handed batters to retire, second baseman Dee Gordon and left fielder Christian Yelich.
“If I’m going to take [Greinke] out after Gordon,” Mattingly said, “then I have to take him out before Gordon.”
Left-handed reliever Adam Liberatore got Gordon on a slow roller to the mound to end the inning, and closer Kenley Jansen worked around a leadoff double by Yelich in the ninth to nail down his 11th save of the season.
The Dodgers’ bullpen has a streak of 12 2/3 straight scoreless innings.
Grienke allowed the minimum three batters in four of his seven complete innings, and he never allowed a Miami baserunner to get past second. But he said his stuff is still not exactly up to his standards.
“I’ve always been able to throw four pitches for strikes, but not all of them have been quality,” he said. “This year, I have three pitches that have been high quality, and my curve ball has been so-so at best. I can throw it for strikes but it’s not been very good.”
Los Angeles (43-34) took two out of three games in the series with Miami. The Dodgers got three hits and one RBI from first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and two hits and one RBI from second baseman Howie Kendrick. Offensively, though, it was not a great effort. Gonzalez’s RBI double was the only extra-base hit, and the Dodgers scored just two runs for the second straight game.
Fortunately for the Dodgers, they had Greinke in great form yet again. But it’s not just his pitching. Greinke plays an all-around game. He nearly beat out an infield hit on a grounder to the hole at shortstop -- the play was ruled an out after a video review. In addition, he fields his position well.
“He’s been phenomenal,” Kendrick said. “It’s fun to play some ‘D’ and watch him work on the mound. His defense on the mound -- I knew he could play ‘D,’ but I’ve been pretty impressed. He’s like a little shortstop up the middle.”
When the Dodgers finally got him a lead with a run in the fifth, Greinke didn’t get excited -- at least not outwardly.
“I think I [saw] him dancing on the inside,” Mattingly joked.