Hiroki Kuroda News

Hiroki Kuroda tries to approach all of his starts the same way -- no matter if he's pitching in the postseason or the regular season.

LOS ANGELES _ A well-rested Hiroki Kuroda was exactly what the Dodgers needed. Kuroda shut out the Chicago Cubs for 61/3 innings to lead the Dodgers to a 3-1 victory in front of 56,000 screaming fans at Dodger ...

One mistake and it was trouble. Maybe big trouble. Maybe that's-your-ballgame trouble.

Hidden somewhere behind the dominant storyline, a saga of the wind being let out of a famously windy city, there was another masterpiece by suddenly masterful Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Dodgers completed a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs with a 3-1 victory on Saturday to advance to the National League Championship Series.

The Dodgers took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a double by James Loney. Starting pitcher Hiroki Kuroda kept the Cubs in check into the 7th inning before relievers Cory Wade and Jonathan Broxton sewed up the win.

The Dodgers advance to the NL Championship Series where they will face the winner of the Philadelphia Phillies-Milwaukee Brewers series. The Phillies lead that series 2-1 after a Brewers win on Saturday.

How do you feel about the honor of receiving the start in such an important game? HIROKI KURODA: I feel very honored to be the third starter for this important game.

This is the Cubs' big chance. This is their Red Sox moment.

The Cubs now face the same galling indignity, and the same disguised opportunity, that Boston grabbed so spectacularly four years ago when it trailed the Yanks three games to none but came back to reverse the curse.

The Cubs aren't just three wins in a row from coming back against the Dodgers to win a division series. If they can pull it off, they are probably three wins from launching a drive to their first world title in 100 years.

Photo Credit: AP Photo Chicago Cubs Manager Lou Pinella talks with reporters during a news conference prior to Game 3 of the National Baseball League division series in Los Angeles, Friday, Oct.

It's a little shocking to hear one of the Cubs say it. "I think it's pretty do-or-die," Mark DeRosa said this afternoon.

DODGERS: This is a mixed bag. Derek Lowe has dominated in his last nine starts, over the past six weeks, but lately Chad Billingsley has displayed signs that he might be wearing down.

Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since Aug. 2005. He appears weekly on the FSN Baseball Report and MLB on FOX.

At first glance, they look anything but alike, these Dodgers with their beach-ball fans and laid-back manager, and these Cubs with their passionate, hard-drinking fans and their fiery, dirt-kicking manager.

In a final tuneup for the Division Series, Hiroki Kuroda pitched five scoreless innings Sunday, but the Giants rallied for a 3-1 win in the regular-season finale and ruined the managerial debut of Nomar ...

It's a tradition for Joe Torre to hand over the managerial duties to a player for the final game of the regular season, and that player on Sunday is Nomar Garciaparra.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Blake DeWitt, left, laughs at Hiroki Kuroda as they sign autographs after their Major League Baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Thursday, Sept.

Although Dodgers officials won't finalize or announce their pitching plans for their first-round playoff series until they absolutely have to, it is clear that Derek Lowe and Chad Billingsley will start Game 1 ...

The Dodgers juggled their starting rotation for the final regular-season series in San Francisco this weekend, moving Derek Lowe up to Friday and pushing Hiroki Kuroda back to Saturday.

Manager Joe Torre has run the playoff race enough times to know success down the stretch has as much to do with what goes on inside his players' heads as what goes down on the field.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Hiroki Kuroda pitches against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Sept.

Wow. I regret that header already. Anyway... Thursday, the LAT's Dylan Hernandez reported that Brad Penny pitched through shoulder pain in large part because he was concerned about the Dodgers picking up his ...