LOS ANGELES — Clayton Kershaw lowered his major league-leading ERA to 1.88 with eight innings of three-hit ball and had a two-run single, and the Los Angeles Dodgers increased their NL West lead to a season-best 7½ games Sunday night with an 8-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. Mark Ellis had a homer and three RBIs to help Los Angeles improve to a major league-best 37-8 since June 22, a stretch that has dramatically turned around their season after they trailed the Arizona Diamondbacks by as many as 9½ games. The Dodgers are a season-best 17 games over .500. The Rays lost their season-worst fifth in a row, but remained three games behind AL East-leading Boston following the Red Sox's loss at Kansas City. Kershaw (11-7) allowed two runs — one earned — and struck out eight to help the Dodgers complete their seventh series sweep of the season. The Dodgers finished their inter-league schedule 11-6, their first winning record against AL clubs since going 10-8 in 2004, and the Rays completed their inter-league slate 12-8. Kershaw is 6-3 with a 2.67 ERA in 17 career interleague starts, striking out 116 batters in 111 1-3 innings. Nationals 6, Phillies 0: Stephen Strasburg pitched a four-hitter and struck out 10 in the first complete game of his career, Jayson Werth had his second straight three-hit game and Washington completed a three-game sweep of Philadelphia. Strasburg (6-9) dominated the reeling Phillies for his first win since July 7 against San Diego. The Nationals had lost five straight games started by the right-hander. Braves 9, Marlins 4: Freddie Freeman hit a three-run homer and Atlanta beat Miami after having its 14-game winning streak snapped Saturday. B.J. Upton drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly and Chris Johnson hit a two-run double in the four-run seventh inning that broke open a tie game. Jason Heyward had four hits, including a run-scoring single in the eighth. Evan Gattis had three, including his run-scoring double in the seventh. Rockies 3, Pirates 2: Nolan Arenado hit a go-ahead double in the seventh inning and Colorado beat Pittsburgh for a three-game sweep of the NL Central leaders. The Pirates came to Coors Field this weekend with a five-game winning streak. They hold a three-game edge over St. Louis, and visit the Cardinals for a three-game series starting Tuesday. Reds 3, Padres 2, 13 innings: Joey Votto delivered a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 13th inning and Cincinnati overcame two more errors for its fourth win in five games. Jack Hannahan drew a one-out walk from Tim Stauffer (1-1) and Shin-Soo Choo snapped a 0-for-16 slump with a one-out double to right field. Xavier Paul tied the score with a two-run, pinch-hit home run off Ian Kennedy in the eighth. Sam LeCure (2-1), Cincinnati's seventh pitcher, pitched 1 1-3 innings for the win. Cardinals 8, Cubs 4: Pete Kozma singled home the tiebreaking run in the sixth inning and St. Louis ended a four-game losing streak, beating Chicago and avoiding a sweep. Matt Carpenter and Allen Craig each had three hits and drove in a run. Jon Jay and David Freese both drove in two runs, though they only had one hit between them. The Cardinals dropped five of six to begin a 10-game homestand. Orioles 10, Giants 2: J.J. Hardy hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the seventh inning, Adam Jones added a three-run shot in the ninth and Baltimore pounded San Francisco. Hardy's 21st home run of the season gave the Orioles a 3-2 lead. Four players drove in a run in the eighth, Jones hit his 24th homer and every player in Baltimore's starting lineup finished with at least one hit. Mets 9, Diamondbacks 5: Andrew Brown's three-run, pinch-hit home run broke open a close game and New York beat Arizona. Jonathan Niese (4-6), in his first start since June 20, came off the disabled list to go six innings, giving up four runs and seven hits in his first win since May 16. The Mets took two of three from the Diamondbacks. — Agencies
