Clayton Kershaw pitched seven strong innings as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the host Seattle Mariners 6-1 Thursday.

Cody Bellinger homered for the Dodgers, who won for the eighth time in their past nine games.

Kershaw, who improved to 4-0 in four career starts against Seattle, allowed one run on four hits, with a season-high 11 strikeouts. That gave Kershaw 2,493 career strikeouts, moving him past Don Drysdale (2,486) and into second place in franchise history behind only Don Sutton (2,696).

The only run Kershaw allowed was a solo shot to the Mariners' Kyle Seager in the fourth inning. It was the left-handed hitting Seager's 72nd career homer against left-handers as well as his 252nd RBI. Since his debut in 2011, no left-handed batter has hit more home runs off of left-handed pitchers, and he trails only Robinson Cano (256) in RBI against lefties.

Mariners left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who missed his previously scheduled start with neck spasms, retired the side in order in each of the first two innings before running into trouble in the third.

Enrique Hernandez led off with a single to right field and Austin Barnes walked. It appeared Kikuchi got Matt Beaty to swing and miss at a third strike in the dirt, but home-plate umpire Adrian Johnson ruled Beaty had fouled off the pitch. Beaty lined the next pitch into the right-field corner, with the ball bouncing over the fence for a ground-rule double, scoring Hernandez to snap a scoreless tie and sending Barnes to third.

A passed ball by Mariners catcher Joseph Odom brought home Barnes and sent Beaty to third. After a strikeout by Mookie Betts, AJ Pollock grounded a single past a drawn-in infield and into left field to make it 3-0. Pollock moved to second on Justin Turner's groundout to third and scored on Bellinger's soft liner to center for the final run of the inning.

Kikuchi was pulled after loading the bases with two outs in the fifth. The Dodgers proceeded to score a run on a wild pitch by Taylor Guilbeau to make it 5-1.

Kikuchi allowed five runs on four hits in 4 2/3 innings, with four walks and five strikeouts.

Bellinger capped the scoring with a solo shot in the eighth off right-hander Ljay Newsome, who was making his major league debut.

--Field Level Media