DENVER _ On Saturday afternoon, the day of his 30th birthday, Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen ambled into the visitors' clubhouse and walked over to a few teammates seated at a table. Jansen knew the math _ his team needed only one victory to clinch home-field advantage and insure that the road to the 2017 World Series went through Dodger Stadium.
"That's the only present I want," Jansen told the group. "A freaking W on my birthday."
It was far from pretty, but the Dodgers (103-58) granted Jansen his wish in a 5-3 victory over the Rockies. The offense overcame a shaky, abbreviated finale from Clayton Kershaw as Yasiel Puig hit a two-run homer and scored four times.
Chris Taylor supplied two RBIs, both on groundouts, including a go-ahead grounder in the seventh inning. Jansen wrapped a bow on the night with a four-out save to punctuate the fact the Dodgers will finish the regular season with the best record in baseball.
The Dodgers technically clinched the best record in baseball during the middle of their game when the Cleveland Indians lost 2-1 to the Chicago White Sox.
In his final tuneup before the postseason, Kershaw spent a significant portion of the evening getting tuned up. He exited after four high-stress innings. The Rockies hung three runs on him, all in the second inning, and sprayed seven hits. Kershaw left on a relative high note, retiring the last five batters he faced.
Kershaw finished the season with an 18-4 record and a 2.31 earned-run average in 175 innings. The voters of the Baseball Writers Association of America may reward Kershaw with his fourth National League Cy Young Award after the season. But as October approaches, Kershaw has not erased the doubt raised during his five-week absence with a strained back.
Kershaw made six starts after coming off the disabled list on Sept. 1. He posted a 3.48 earned-run average during that period, with a pair of duds against Colorado offsetting quality performances against lesser competition from San Diego and San Francisco.
The team cast Saturday's outing as a warmup, rather than a referendum. The Dodgers afforded Kershaw a relative amount of control for the night. Earlier in the week, Kershaw was told he could decide the length of his outing, within reason. The outing lasted 57 pitches. His departure was dictated in part by Colorado clubbing him around in the early going, and a fifth-inning rally from his teammates.
As Kershaw warmed up in the left-field grass, the Coors Field videoboard aired the ninth inning of Milwaukee's game in St. Louis. The Brewers had gagged away a six-run lead, opening the door for Colorado to clinch the second spot in the wild-card game. Kershaw watched as Brewers outfielder Brett Phillips struck out to end Milwaukee's playoff hopes. Kool and The Gang instructed the mostly empty stadium to celebrate good times.
Inside the Colorado clubhouse, the Rockies staged a dry bash, with champagne to follow later in the night. The game itself would have to wait. The first pitch was delayed by 21 minutes because of concern about a rain storm that never came.
The prospect of a party did not distract the Rockies at the outset. Colorado pressed Kershaw in the bottom of the first. Charlie Blackmon, the Rockies' leadoff hitter, stroked an 0-2 slider up the middle for a single. Kershaw yielded another single on his next pitch, a 94-mph fastball at the fists of second baseman D.J. LeMahieu, who punched a single into the outfield.
Up came Nolan Arenado, the three-time All-Star third baseman. Kershaw picked up two quick strikes. He spun a 2-2 curveball, which Arenado swung over, for a crucial strikeout. Kershaw retired the next two batters on groundouts to strand the runners.
Kershaw fared worse in the second. An 0-1 slider arrived at the waist of Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez. The ball landed in the seats beyond the right-field fence.
It was the 23rd homer surrendered by Kershaw this season. Before 2017, he had never before given up more than 16 in one year. Across the sport, hitters have produced a record number of home runs. The wave has crested over Kershaw.
"I guess he's made more mistakes," Roberts said. "That's an easy answer to a probably more complicated question, but that's as simple as it gets."
Kershaw prefers to locate his sliders in the lower portion of the strike zone, where they can induce groundballs, if the hitter makes contact at all. When the pitch is elevated, it can soar. Gonzalez offered a reminder of that.
The hits did not cease. After a single by outfielder Ian Desmond, Kershaw made another mistake to catcher Jonathan Lucroy. His curveball bubbled over the middle. Lucroy smashed it into left field for an RBI double.
The lineup turned over, which forced Kershaw to face Blackmon again. Blackmon wasted no time. He laced a first-pitch fastball into right field for another run-scoring hit, as Colorado's lead expanded to three.
The Dodgers surged to tie the score. Puig led the charge. He opened the third inning with a walk, raced to third base on a single by Chase Utley and scored on a Taylor groundout.
Two innings later, Curtis Granderson rolled an opposite-field single through the infield to get aboard. Puig stepped in against Rockies pitcher German Marquez for the second time. Marquez flung a 96-mph fastball down the middle. Puig hit it on a line into the Rockies' bullpen to even the score.
