LOS ANGELES — Matt Carpenter hit a go-ahead, three-run double off a wilting Clayton Kershaw in an eight-run seventh inning and the St. Louis Cardinals rallied for a 10-9 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in a fiery NL Division Series opener Friday.
It was 92 degrees at game time, and things quickly got more heated during a surprising slugfest. St. Louis overcame a five-run deficit against Kershaw and held on when Trevor Rosenthal blew an 100 mph fastball past Yasiel Puig with a runner on third to end a back-and-forth game that lasted nearly four hours.
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In a matchup of 20-games winners, Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright hit Puig with a pitch leading off the third, triggering a bench-clearing scrum. There was shoving and shouting, but no punches were thrown.
Wainwright succumbed first on the mound, allowing six runs and 11 hits in 4 2-3 innings. But Kershaw failed once again in the postseason.
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