Game 72: Clayton Kershaw wins surprise matchup against Nats’ Yusmeiro Petit.

Clayton Kershaw

Clayton Kershaw improved to 11-1 against the Washington Nationals on Monday. (Getty Images)

Clayton Kershaw earned his paycheck Monday in a 4-1 Dodgers win over the Washington Nationals.

The box score is here.

Zach Lee is looking forward to his new opportunity in the Mariners organization.

The Dodgers went 5-1 in their six games prior to today, only to lose a half-game in the National League West standings. The Giants’ eight-game winning streak ended Monday with a 1-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates, so the Dodgers within 5 ½ games of first place. They’re six games over .500 for the first time all season.

Game 71: Kenta Maeda stands tall, Dodgers come back to beat Milwaukee Brewers.

Chase Utley

Chase Utley is tagged out at home plate by Brewers catcher Martin Maldonado in the first inning of the Dodgers’ 2-1 win Sunday. (David Crane/Staff photographer)


Kiké Hernandez‘s eighth-inning home run, and Yasmani Grandal‘s bases-loaded walk in the ninth inning, lifted the Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Kenta Maeda was excellent. The box score is here. The photo gallery is here.

Mike Bolsinger was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City and Carlos Frias was recalled for the first time this season. Also in that story: Zach Lee was traded to Seattle.

Dodgers activate Carl Crawford from disabled list, option Zach Lee to Triple-A.

Carl Crawford

Carl Crawford has spent 16 days on the disabled list this year with a back injury after missing 75 games last year with an oblique injury. (John McCoy/Staff photographer)

The Dodgers activated Carl Crawford from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday. He’s starting in left field and batting seventh against the Miami Marlins, who will send right-handed pitcher Tom Koehler to the mound. Crawford has never faced Koehler in his career.
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Some roster moves are coming after today’s game.

DENVER — Outfielder Carl Crawford and pitcher Louis Coleman will be added to the Dodgers’ roster for tomorrow’s game against the Miami Marlins. That means that two spots will have to be cleared after today’s game against the Colorado Rockies.

The Dodgers have carried eight relievers all this week, which manager Dave Roberts said would be the case prior to their road trip to Atlanta and Denver. It’s possible if not likely that this will change once the Dodgers return home. Zach Lee is an obvious candidate to return to Triple-A; I explained why in today’s notebook.

Three other relievers (Adam Liberatore, J.P. Howell and Luis Avilan) throw left-handed, and it isn’t often that a team keeps three lefties in a seven-man bullpen. Liberatore and Avilan can both be optioned to the minors. The Marlins have five left-handed hitting position players — more than most teams — so it isn’t inconceivable that Liberatore and Avilan both stay. It just seems unlikely based on precedent.

File all of this under the category of “educated guess.”

Game 18: Kenta Maeda ascends to a class by himself in Dodgers’ victory.

Kenta Maeda

Dodgers pitcher Kenta Maeda lowered his ERA to 0.36 in the Dodgers’ 4-1 win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday. (Getty Images)

DENVER — Kenta Maeda has exceeded all expectations for his first season. Saturday, he ascended to a class by himself. The box score is here.

Zach Lee is back with the Dodgers for a change — as a reliever no less — and he reflected on his runner-up finish to Ross Stripling for the fifth starter’s job.