April 05--REPORTING FROM SAN DIEGO -- For one afternoon, as the sun faded over Petco Park and an unsettling spring temporarily became a memory, all was well for the Dodgers. Their hitters occupied the bases with stunning regularity. Clayton Kershaw quieted the bats of the Padres with mirthless efficiency. The distance between the two teams measured in double digits in an immaculate debut for Manager Dave Roberts.
The coming weeks and months will determine if this team can validate the vision of its front office, but in a 15-0 opening-day pounding of San Diego, there was little reason to quibble. Every member of the starting lineup recorded a hit. Chase Utley notched three hits, Adrian Gonzalez provided three RBI singles and Justin Turner doubled twice. Yasiel Puig capped the onslaught by roping an RBI triple and scoring on a fielding error in the eighth.
The outburst obscured the dominance of their pitcher. Starting his sixth opener, Kershaw struck out nine and let only two runners on base in seven innings. He finished with as many hits at the plate (one) as he allowed the entire Padres lineup. He retired the final 13 men he faced.
Roberts planned to spend about 10 seconds admiring the scene before the game, preserving memories for the start of his managerial debut. His team afforded him the chance to admire their rout for the game's final four innings.
The spring robbed the Dodgers of Andre Ethier, their leadoff hitter against right-handers, due to a broken leg. As an alternative, the team turned to Utley, 37, the oldest player on their roster. Monday marked the 1,586th game of Utley's career. It was only his 12th appearance as a leadoff hitter.
Roberts texted Utley on Sunday evening to inform him of the decision. In the season's first at-bat, he ran the count full against Padres starter Tyson Ross, then flared a double. Three pitches later, rookie Corey Seager scalded an elevated, 89-mph fastball off the wall for an RBI double. Seager scored on a single by Gonzalez to pad the lead.
Utley played a role in the next Dodgers score. After a wayward slider from Ross hit Utley's leg, rookie third-base coach Chris Woodward sent him home when Turner doubled into the left-field corner. The Padres completed the relay to throw Utley out. The aggressive decision by Woodward stung, because moments later, Gonzalez splashed his second run-scoring hit into center.
The lineup entrusted the lead to Kershaw. He showed no indication of wobbling. The Padres scarcely made solid contact. On this day, little could dent his control of the proceedings.
In the hours before he pitches, Kershaw radiates an intensity that repulses human interaction. On Monday afternoon, he propped an iPhone on a table in the center of the clubhouse and studied film. He cast an occasional glance upward as teammates, coaches, reporters, executives and members of the ownership group filtered through the space. When the room approached capacity, he exited.
Kershaw did not allow a hit until there were two outs in the third. Padres outfielder Jon Jay singled to left. Kershaw promptly broke the bat of catcher Derek Norris with a 94-mph fastball on the fists to produce a harmless flyout.
Even the addition of a fourth strike to the count could not aid the Padres. In the bottom of the fifth, Kershaw slipped a 1-2 slider beneath the lumber of outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. Umpire Gary Cederstrom declared it a foul ball.
"Come on," Kershaw told Cederstrom. "That's not even close."
He still looked sour after he received the return feed from catcher A.J. Ellis. Kershaw reared back and fired another slider. Upton missed the pitch. Cederstrom did not miss the call.
Any tension seeped from the park in the sixth. Ross started the inning by hitting Puig. Carl Crawford legged out an infield single. Joc Pederson scalded a run-scoring double. With the San Diego infield pulled in, Ellis chopped a two-run single off the glove of shortstop Alexei Ramirez.
Up came Kershaw. He leaned forward to bunt, only to wheel back into hitting position at the last second. He slashed a single up the middle. He scored two batters later, after Ross departed the mound and after former Dodger Matt Kemp allowed a run by misplaying an Utley single, on a sacrifice fly by Seager for the inning's fifth run.
The Dodgers added three more in the seventh and four in the eighth. The Padres are expected to reside in the basement of the National League West. The Giants and the Diamondbacks loom as more worthy challengers to this team's three-year reign atop the division.
But for one day, after a bitter winter and an alarming spring, the Dodgers could enjoy an afternoon of dominance.
Andy.mccullough@latimes.com
Twitter: @McCulloughTimes
