Kershaw roughed up in relief in 'hard to watch' 8th

"Tanner Scott was absent for what was later described as a personal matter, two other left-handed relievers had already been used, and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts didn't want to use his three best relievers -- two of them converted starting pitchers -- in a deficit. And so, in the eighth inning of a two-run game on Wednesday night, Clayton Kershaw spilled back onto the field hoping to keep a score manageable by providing his team with three additional outs."

"J.T. Realmuto led off with a home run, six other batters reached base, and by the end of it, the Philadelphia Phillies had tacked on five additional runs, cruising to the 8-2 victory that saved their season. Kershaw, the future Hall of Fame left-hander who will retire at season's end, was making his first postseason relief appearance since the decisive Game 5 of the 2019 NLDS, when he came back out for a second inning and surrendered back-to-back, game-tying home runs to Anthony Rendon"

""Just didn't make enough good pitches," said Kershaw, his team still leading this best-of-five series 2-1. "I was battling command. It's hard when you're trying to throw strikes as opposed to getting people out. Just wasn't a fun thing.""

Tanner Scott was absent for a personal matter, and the Dodgers had already used two other left-handed relievers, leaving limited bullpen options. Manager Dave Roberts turned to Clayton Kershaw in the eighth of a two-run game to secure three outs. J.T. Realmuto led off with a home run, and six other Phillies reached base as the inning unraveled, producing five additional runs. The Phillies won 8-2, keeping their season alive. Kershaw, slated to retire after the season, said he battled command and failed to make enough good pitches in the outing.

Read at ESPN.com