Arizona Diamondbacks' "ace" Ian Kennedy had perhaps the best pitching night of his young career, going all nine innings for his first complete game and allowing only three hits and no runs en rout to beating Cliff Lee, the big free agent signing of the Philadelphia Phillies. Perhaps he was excited after the birth of his first child on Sunday morning.
The D-backs ended Philly's five-game winning streak and their own four-game losing streak. The Snakes' bats weren't extremely potent, but they did the job, with Chris Young (two-run) and Gerardo Parra (solo) homering off of Lee, despite Lee's 12 strikeouts -- a total that was one short of his career high. Kennedy struck out 10 for the D-backs.
Kennedy now has a 3-1 record, his only loss being the 5-15 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in which he gave up nine earned runs over just three innings. With Monday's game, he lowered his ERA to 4.02 from 5.64. Kennedy's extended outing was a change of pace from previous starting pitching that had given way to relievers earlier than desired.
Arizona's additional offense came in the form of an RBI single from Ryan Roberts, who scored Justin Upton after he had been walked by Lee and stole second base.