Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw had his incredible scoreless streak snapped at 41 innings Thursday night, when San Diego Padres third baseman Chase Headley hit a solo home run to left-center field in the sixth inning of an eventual 2-1 Dodgers victory.
Kershaw's streak, which had become the subject of significant media attention, was the third-longest in Dodgers history, trailing only the 59-inning run put together by Orel Hershiser in 1988 and the 58-inning streak courtesy of Don Drysdale in 1968, according to the team's official Twitter page.
The pair of aforementioned streaks are the two longest in MLB history, a fitting feat for an organization known for its impressive history of aces.
Kershaw's streak, meanwhile, is tied for fifth-longest in the majors since 1961, according to Eric Stephens of True Blue LA. Hershiser and Drysdale hold down the top two spots, while Bob Gibson had a 47-inning streak for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1968, and Brandon Webb had a 42-inning streak with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2007.
Tied with Kershaw in fifth place is Luis Tiant, who tossed 41 consecutive scoreless innings for the Cleveland Indians in 1968.
Three of the top six streaks came in '68, best known to baseball fans as the "Year of the Pitcher." Gibson posted a ridiculous 1.12 ERA over 304.2 innings that season, setting a live-ball era record that still stands.
While challenging Gibson's record is seemingly out of the question, Kershaw currently owns a sparkling 1.78 ERA, putting him on track to become the first qualifying starter since Roger Clemens in 2005 (1.87) with a sub-2.00 ERA at the end of a season.
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