Mets find themselves on wrong end of milestone

LOS ANGELES -- Over the years, the Mets have seen Clayton Kershaw plenty at the height of his powers. He has thrown multiple shutouts against them. In 17 regular-season starts, Kershaw has permitted more than three runs to the Mets just twice. Of course, the Mets have had their moments too, most notably beating Kershaw in Game 1 of the 2015 National League Division Series.

But Tuesday was one of Kershaw’s nights. Looking a decade younger than his 35 years, Kershaw dominated the Mets over seven innings to win his 200th game in a 5-0 Dodgers victory.

“It’s not the first time,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “We shouldn’t feel like he’s picking on us. He’s been good for a long time.”

The Mets’ best chance to score occurred in the first inning, when Jason Heyward committed a three-base error on Brandon Nimmo’s leadoff fly ball. But Starling Marte, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso all struck out in succession, as Kershaw began carving up a lineup stacked with right-handed hitters.

Kershaw improved to 11-0 with a 2.03 ERA against the Mets in the regular season. He has beaten the Mets more often than all but one team outside the NL West.

“There’s a reason he’s going to be a Hall of Famer,” said Nimmo, who routinely received nights off early in his career when the Mets were scheduled to face Kershaw. “There’s a reason he’s still in the game, and he did a very good job of working efficiently.”

In all the ways that Kershaw unwound the clock on Tuesday, the Mets are looking to do the same with their own aging legends. They still haven’t seen Justin Verlander in a game, though the team finally has what appears to be a concrete timetable for him: a rehab start in the final days of April, followed by a likely return in early May. Then there is Max Scherzer, whose most recent start was pushed back due to lingering back soreness; he’ll return to the mound on Wednesday looking to silence the Dodgers in much the same way that Kershaw silenced the Mets.

Kershaw, 35, is nearly four years younger than Scherzer and a full five years younger than Verlander, though all three pitchers are similar in terms of baseball mileage. Very likely future Hall of Famers, they rank in the top five among active pitchers in innings, wins and strikeouts. But unlike Kershaw, who has been a Dodger his entire career, Scherzer and Verlander are hired legends, brought in to give the Mets instant credibility as they look to mold future Kershaws of their own.

For now, the Mets are relying on a patchwork rotation in the absence of veterans Verlander, José Quintana and Carlos Carrasco. That has meant regular starts for David Peterson and Tylor Megill, the latter of whom grew up an Angels fan all too aware of Kershaw’s exploits.

Pitching against the legend with friends and family in attendance at Dodger Stadium, Megill held his own despite being inefficient in all the ways that Kershaw was efficient. He stranded seven runners over five innings, but allowed two J.D. Martinez homers to take the loss -- a defeat that someone was going to have to absorb if Kershaw was to win his 200th.

“Congratulations to him,” Megill said. “That’s the kind of longevity and whatnot that you strive for. Growing up and watching him pitch, that’s what it’s all about.”