SAN DIEGO --

Takeo Spikes' 8-yard sack on a second and 10 play, followed by Eric Weddle's interception of a Matt Moore pass intended for Anthony Fasano with 2:53 to play, pretty much slammed the lid on any Miami hopes of getting its first victory. The Chargers ran out the clock and came away with a 26-16 victory Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium, and at 3-1 moved into first place in the AFC West.

* * *

The Chargers burned more than seven minutes on the drive that led to Nick Novak's 38-yard field goal, his fourth of the game, and a 26-16 lead with 4:28 left.

* * *

It's now 23-16, Chargers, after Dan Carpenter kicked a 51-field goal with 11:34 left in the game. Key play in the 46-yard drive, an 18-yard pass from Matt Moore to Lex Hilliard on third-and-3 at the Dolphins' 17.

* * *

Nick Novak drilled a 23-yard field goal with 1:15 left in the third quarter to pad the Chargers' lead over Miami, 23-13, after an exchange of pass interference penalties.

Malcolm Floyd appared to have caught a 31-yard pass from Philip Rivers down to the Miami 3, but was called for "illegal touching" -- i.e., stepping out of bounds and coming back in to catch the pass. On the very next play, Floyd and Miami safety Yeremiah Bell got tangled up downfield, and Bell was called for pass interference, giving the Chargers a first down at the 13.

* * *

Igor Olshansky, the defensive tackle who played here for so long and got wild cheers every time his name was announced -- to the point where I speculated the fans were cheering the idea of an Igor Olshansky rather than anything specific he did -- was in on his first tackle late in the third quarter.

No cheers, this time, when his name was announced. Just a few scattered boos.

* * *

Dan Carpenter's 37-yard field goal with 6:46 left in the third quarter cut San Diego's lead to 20-13. It was helped along, natch, by another Chargers' miscue, rookie cornerback Marcus Gilchrist's 25-yard pass interference penalty that nullified Eric Weddle's interception and instead gave Miami a first-and-10 at the Chargers' 41.

Matt Moore found Brandon Marshall for 14 yards and a first down, setting up the field goal.

Watching the Dolphins' pass defense, it's not hard to understand why they're 0-3.

They've now allowed six Philip Rivers completions of 15 or more yards, Two of them, a 20-yarder to Vincent Brown and a 42-yard play on a short pass to Ryan Mathews, set up Mike Tolbert's touchdown leap from the 1 with 9:24 left in the third quarter, giving San Diego a 20-10 lead.

Essentially, the Dolphins' coverage and tackling ability have been lacking today. If the Chargers pay attention, they could still turn this into a rout.

* * *

Nick Novak drilled a 48-yard field goal with seven seconds left in the first half, and the Chargers left the field with a 13-10 intermission lead over the Miami Dolphins ... the 0-3 Dolphins, for those who have forgotten.

* * *

Halftime statistical notes: Vincent Jackson already has 108 receiving yards, on three catches, The Chargers have 34 rushing yards, total, but Philip Rivers has thrown for 191 yards (14 of 19) with a touchdown and no picks.

Matt Moore, the former UCLA and Oregon State quarterback summoned after Chad Henne injured his shoulder late in the first quarter, completed 8 of 9 passes for 85 yards in the half. Reggie Bush has 38 yards on 10 carries to lead all rushers so far.

Alex Tamin, who has spent more than 15 years handling salary arbitration and contract negotiations for a number of baseball teams, has joined the Dodgers staff as Director of Baseball Contracts, Research and Operations, general manager Ned Colletti has announced.

He will be the primary person handling salary arbitration cases and will work with Colletti on all contract negotiations.

Tamin received his law degree from UCLA in 1995.

As he has done repeatedly with attention focused on his Cy Young candidacy, Clayton Kershaw -- who improved to 21-5 with Sunday's win -- did his best to share his success.

"Having wins is something I take pride in," he said, "That's the most important thing to me. And I can't do it all by myself. So this team has been huge for me."

The Dodgers gave him two first-inning runs to work with, continuing what Kershaw noted had been an early pattern, and a rather daunting task for an opponent, as Padres manager Bud Black said: "Two runs in the first inning against a guy who's probably going to win the Cy Young is tough to come back from."

SAN DIEGO -- Clayton Kershaw lost his shutout bid when Aaron Cunningham homered with two outs in the fifth, but he and the Dodgers are still breezing. Kershaw -- chasing the pitching triple crown (wins, ERA, strikeouts) has given up two hits and a walk while striking out six.

The Dodgers extended their lead in the fifth as Jamey Carroll walked, and Matt Kemp reached on an error -- his roller to third going under the glove of Alberto Gonzalez. Juan Rivera singled in Carroll, and Kemp scored on an Aaron Miles ground out. They had five hits off Cory Luebke, lifted for a pinch-hitter in the sixth.

Matt Kemp is 1 for 3. His batting average is at .325, eight points behind leader Ryan Braun of Milwaukee. He remains tied for the league lead in home runs (37) and leads in RBIs with 120.

SAN DIEGO -- Clayton Kershaw, going for win No. 21, has allowed just one baserunner through three innings -- opposing pitcher Cory Luebke, who walked. Kershaw has struck out five.

The Dodgers scored twice in the first against Luebke, as Jamey Carroll walked with one out and Matt Kemp doubled. Juan Rivera's fly out moved Kemp to third before he scored on Aaron Miles' single. The Dodgers have three hits, the other being a second-inning single by Jerry Sands that extended his hitting streak to 13 games.

SAN DIEGO -- Well, it has already begun. Safety Bob Sanders, who was available to the Chargers primarily because of a spotty injury history the past couple of years in Indianapolis, is inactive for today's game with Kansas City because of a knee issue.

And so is tight end Antonio Gates, who is again being plagued by the plantar fasciitis that limited him to 10 games in 2010. And so is rookie defensive end Corey Liuget, who has an ankle injury. The Chargers are expected to plug in Steve Gregory to replace Sanders, Jacques Cesaire to replace Liuget and Randy McMichael to replace Gates.

The lists:

Chargers: S Paul Oliver, S Bob Sanders, RB Jordan Todman, LB Darryl Gamble, DE Luis Castillo, DE Corey Liuget.

(Incidentally, Castillo, who is out with a fractured tibia, is on the cover of the game program celebrating the Chargers' ties to the Latino community. Nice timing.)

Chiefs: QB Ricky Stanzi, S Reshard Langford, T Steve Maneri, WR Jerheme Urban, WR Jonathan Baldwin, DL Brandon Bair, DL Jerrell Powe.

A little later than usual today, because the Padres actually had left the fourth spot in their order blank for a while. Finally, they've come to Jesus (Guzman) for that spot. The Dodgers, not surprisingly, are going with the regulars as Clayton Kershaw goes for win No. 21.

An early triple crown update: Ryan Braun is 1 for 2 for the Brewers, in the third inning of their game with Florida, pushing his lead over Matt Kemp to seven points at this moment.

Dodgers (79-78, third NL West, 12.5 games back)
Dee Gordon, SS (.298, 0 HR, 10 RBIs)
Jamey Carroll, 2B (.285, 0, 16)
Matt Kemp, CF (.325, 37, 119)
Juan Rivera, LF (.289, 5, 44)
Aaron Miles, 3B (.279, 3, 43)
James Loney, 2B (.288, 11, 63)
Jerry Sands, RF (.249, 4, 26)
Rod Barajas, C (.231, 15, 45)
Clayton Kershaw, LHP (20-5, 2.27 ERA; batting, .232, 0, 4)

Padres (69-89, fifth NL west, 23 games back)
Cameron Maybin, CF (.263, 9, 38)
Jason Bartlett, SS (.251, 2, 40)
Nick Hundley, C (.288, 8, 26)
Jesus Guzman, 1B (.313, 5, 44)
Chris Denorfia, RF (.279, 5, 19)
Orlando Hudson, 2B (.241, 7, 43)
Aaron Cunningham, LF (.176, 2, 8)
Alberto Gonzalez, 3B (.214, 1, 31)
Cory Luebke, LHP (6-9, 3.23 ERA; .212, 0, 0)

SAN DIEGO -- If Matt Kemp's feeling any pressure in chasing a triple crown and a 40-40 season, you would never know it from talking to him after Saturday's loss to the Padres.

Kemp went 1 for 4 with a single, slipping to six points behind Ryan Braun in the league batting race, but was generally in good humor as he talked to reporters, laughing when someone asked about the look on his face during a couple of at-bats.

"Like (bleep), I should have hit that pitch?" he suggested.

SAN DIEGO -- Chad Billingsley sailed through the first four innings, allowing just one hit, but is out after allowing three runs with two outs in the fifth. Billingsley allowed four hits and three walks while striking out three.

Will Venable and Orlando Hudson each had RBI hits. The last run was unearned, as Venable scored from second when The last of the runs was unearned, as Venable scored when catcher Tim Federowicz threw wildly on a pickoff try to first.

Matt Kemp, who singled in his first at-bat, struck out in the fourth and flied out to deep center field, just a few feet shy of the wall, in the sixth. He is now batting .326, trailing Jose Reyes and Ryan Braun in average in his attempt to win the triple crown.

Padres starter Aaron Harang has allowed just three hits, most recently a Jerry Sands double in the sixth.

SAN DIEGO -- Similar to last night's 2-0 Dodger win, there's not a lot going on offensively.

The Dodgers have just two hits off Aaron Harang, including a Matt Kemp single in the first. That edges his average up to .327. Jose Reyes went 1 for 3 today and is batting .330; Ryan Braun is 1 for 2 so far for Milwuakee and is also at .330. The other hit belongs to James Loney.

Just two Padres have reached base against Chad Billingsley, both on walks. Billingsley has one strikeout.

For the middle game of the set, Don Mattingly goes back to more of a mix of regulars and youngsters. The Padres' starting lineup has 31 home runs -- or six fewer than Matt Kemp.

Dodgers (79-77, third NL West, 11.5 games back)
Dee Gordon, SS (.299, 0 HR, 10 RBIs)
Jerry Sands, RF (.249, 4, 26)
Matt Kemp, CF (.326, 37, 119)
Juan Rivera, LF (.294, 5, 44)
James Loney, 1B (.288, 11, 63)
Russell Mitchell, 3B (.167, 2, 3)
Tim Federowicz, C (.200, 0, 1)
Justin Sellers, 2B (.196, 1, 11)
Chad Billingsley, RHP (11-10, 4.23 ERA; batting, .164, 1, 4)

Padres (68-89, fifth NL West, 23 games back)
Will Venable, LF (.249, 7, 38)
Orlando Hudson, 2B (.241, 7, 42)
Cameron Maybin, CF (.265, 9, 38)
Chase Headley, 3B (.291, 4, 44)
Jeremy Hermida, RF (.180, 2, 9)
Luis Martinez, C (.235, 1, 10)
Anthony Rizzo, 1B (.138, 1, 9)
Andy Parrino, SS (.179, 0, 3)
Aaron Harang, RHP (13-7, 3.82 ERA; batting, .093, 0, 1)

SAN DIEGO -- Can there be any greater contrast than Matt Kemp and Eugenio Velez?

Kemp, with his seventh-inning home run on Friday night, is now tantalisingly close to becoming the first triple-crown winner since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967, leading the National League in RBIs (119), tied for the lead in homers (37) and, at .326, three points back of Ryan Braun in the batting-average race.

"A lot happened today," said Kemp, who was celebrating his 27th birthday. "A win, Javy (Guerra) got 20 saves, (Ted) Lilly pitched good. We did a good job today.

"It was one of those games where there wasn't much going on, but we found a way to win."

SAN DIEGO -- So far, Ted Lilly is making the Dodgers' second-inning run stand up.

Lilly gave up a double to Nick Hundley to lead off the fourth, then retired six straight before Jason Bartlett singled to open the sixth. Lilly has struck out seven and walked two, and has the Padres at 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position.

The Dodgers have had just two hits off Wade LeBlanc since the Jerry Sands double that led to their run in the second. Justin Sellers singled to lead off the fourth, and Dee Gordon bunted his way on with two outs in the sixth.

SAN DIEGO -- The Dodgers' exhibition-game lineup -- that's Matt Kemp, Ted Lilly and seven guys who began the year in the minor leagues -- has one hit, and an early lead.

The run came in the second, as Jerry Sands led off with a double, moved up on a Trent Oeltjen's sacrifice, and scored on a Russ Mitchell ground out. Sands is the only player to reach base against San Diego lefty Wade LeBlanc.

Lilly, meanwhile, has given up a hit in the first and two walks in the second. He has struck out three.

*--Updates with Padre changes: Guzman out, Parrino in, new order.

It may be the end of the season, but tonight's Dodger lineup screams Spring Training. It includes two players, Matt Kemp and Ted Lilly, who were with the team when the season began.

Dodgers (78-77, third NL West, 11.5 games back)
Dee Gordon, SS (.299, 0 HR, 10 RBIs)
Justin Sellers, 3B (.194, 1, 11)
Matt Kemp, CF (.326, 36, 118)
Jerry Sands, RF (.247, 4, 26)
Trent Oeltjen, LF (.215, 2, 26)
Russ Mitchell, 1B (.178, 2, 2)
Tim Federowicz, C (.286, 0, 1)
Eugenio Velez, 2B (.000, 0, 1)
Ted LIlly, LHP (10-14, 4.27 ERA; batting, .075, 0, 3)

Padres (68-88, fifth NL West, 22 games back)
Cameron Maybin, CF (.266, 9, 38)
Jason Bartlett, SS (.251, 2, 40)
Chris Denorfia, RF (.279, 5, 19)
Nick Hundley, C (.289, 8, 26)
Orlando Hudson, 2B (.243, 7, 43)
Aaron Cunningham, LF (.171, 2, 8)
Alberto Gonzalez, 1B (.218, 1, 31)
Andy Parrino, 3B (.184, 0, 3)
Wade LeBlanc, LHP (4-5, 5.07 ERA; batting, .368, 0, 1)

LOS ANGELES -- And that's it for the Dodgers' home schedule: 42 wins, 39 losses, and award-worthy seasons for MVP candidate Matt Kemp and Cy Young contender Clayton Kershaw.

Kershaw figured into Thursday's finale only with a between-innings curtain call, but Kemp's fingerprints were all over this one. After three doubles in his first four at-bats -- the first three-double game of his career -- he blasted a two-run homer in the eighth off Cy-Young-winner-turned-janitor Barry Zito, left to mop up the final inning.

"My mom was here," he said. "I think every time my mom comes, I play good. I need to get her to more games."

LOS ANGELES -- Hiroki Kuroda is rolling in what may be his final start at Dodger Stadium, having allowed just three hits and retiring the last eight Giant batters. He has struck out three and walked one, needing just 70 pitches to get through six innings.

The Dodgers have extended their lead with a Dee Gordon RBI single in the fourth and two runs in the fifth, one coming on a bases-loaded walk to Rod Barajas and one on a Jamey Carroll fielder's choice. Giants starter Madison Bumgarner lasted just four innings, giving up nine hits and four earned runs.

Kuroda, a free agent this winter, has said he plans to pitch one more season. He is generally expected to return to Japan to conclude his career where it began, in Hiroshima, although he has not announced a decision.

LOS ANGELES -- Carlos Beltran gave the Giants the lead with a solo homer in the top of the first, but Juan Rivera answered with a two-run homer in the bottom of the inning, and drove in another run in the third.

With two outs, Beltran fouled off four two-strike pitches before homering off Hiroki Kuroda on the 10th pitch of his at-bat. Giant pitcher Madison Bumgarner retired the first two batters in the bottom of the first, then gave up a double to Matt Kemp before Rivera hit his fifth homer as a Dodger, a blast halfway up the left-field pavilion.

In the third, Dee Gordon and Jerry Sands singled to lead off the inning, and Rivera singled home Gordon with one out.

Kuroda has allowed two hits and struck out three. Bumgarner has allowed six hits.

Thursday pregame notes and quotes that didn't make it into Friday's Dodger notebook in the Press-Enterprise and on PE.com, which focuses on the return of Tommy Lasorda, a possible change in September roster rules, and Don Mattingly's reaction to the news that Manny Ramirez wants to return to the major leagues.

-- Mattingly said the prospect of moving Clayton Kershaw's final start into the final series at Arizona -- which had been held open as a possibility if the Diamondbacks were still fighting for a playoff berth -- is officially dead. The Cy Young candidate will make his final start as scheduled on Sunday at San Diego.

"He didn't really want to bump back," Mattingly said. "He wanted to stay on schedule. We're leaving him right where he's been."

Lineups for the final home game of the 2011 season:

Giants (84-71, second NL West, 5.5 games back)
Justin Christian, CF (.258, 0 HR, 4 RBIs)
Jeff Keppinger, 2B (.281, 6, 34)
Carlos Beltran, RF (.304, 20, 82)
Pablo Sandoval, 3B (.308, 22, 67)
Aubrey Huff, 1B (.247, 12, 59)
Brandon Belt, LF (.212, 8, 16)
Brandon Crawford, SS (.199, 3, 20)
Chris Stewart, C (.209, 3, 10)
Madison Bumgarner, LHP (12-12, 3.21 ERA; batting, .127, 0, 3)

Dodgers (77-77, third NL West, 12 games back)
Dee Gordon, SS (.294, 0 HR, 9 RBIs)
Jerry Sands, RF (.249, 4, 26)
Matt Kemp, CF (.322, 35, 116)
Juan Rivera, LF (.291, 4, 41)
Aaron Miles, 3B (.280, 3, 43)
James Loney, 1B (.288, 11, 63)
Rod Barajas, C (.229, 15, 44)
Jamey Carroll, 2B (.288, 4, 26)
Hiroki Kuroda, RHP (12-16, 3.19 ERA; batting, 105, 0, 1)

LOS ANGELES -- For a good breakdown of Dana Eveland's night, there's no need to go any further than the pitcher himself.

Eveland (2-2), making his fourth Dodger start, gave up five runs in four innings, and the pattern of the evening was that he would have two strikes on a batter, and then lose him. In the three-run first, Eveland walked Brandon Belt, who had trailed 0-2 in the count, and Mark DeRosa, who had been behind 1-2. Mike Fontenot then singled on a 1-2 pitch to drive in the final two runs.

And in the fourth, when he gave up two more runs, Chris Stewart walked after being behind 1-2 and Justin Christian had a two-run double on a 1-2 pitch.

LOS ANGELES -- Matt Kemp's 35th home run, a three-run blast well into the pavilion in left-center, has the Dodgers back in the game after they trailed 5-0.

San Francisco had extended its lead on Justin Christian's two-out, two-run double in the fourth. But the Dodgers rallied against Ryan Vogelsong in the bottom of the fifth as Eugenio Velez was hit by a pitch, followed by singles by Dee Gordon and Jamey Carroll before Kemp hit his home run.

All that came with no outs, but Vogelsong contained the damage at that point. He left after five innings, having allowed nine hits and a walk while striking out three. The Giants tacked on a run in the sixth on Justin Christian's two-out RBI single against Josh Lindblom. Dana Eveland went four innings and was responsible for the first five runs, giving up six hits.

LOS ANGELES -- The Giants lead thanks to a three-run outburst after two were out with none on in the first, as five straight runners reached base against Dana Eveland. Carlos Beltran doubled, followed by an RBI single by Brett Pill, a pair of walks and a two-run single by Mike Fontenot.

Eveland has given up four hits, walked two, hit a batter and struck out one. The Dodgers have also turned a double play behind him in each inning.

The Dodgers have three hits, but Giants starter Ryan Vogelsong has stranded runners in scoring position in the first and second. Vogelsong has issued one walk and has been helped by one double play.

And tonight, Dana Eveland goes for his third win ...

Giants (83-71, second NL West, 5.5 games back)
Justin Christian, CF (.192, 0 HR, 1 RBI)
Jeff Keppinger, 2B (.282, 6, 34)
Carlos Beltran, RF (.303, 20, 82)
Brett Pill, 1B (.280, 2, 6)
Brandon Belt, LF (.216, 8, 16)
Mark DeRosa, 3B (.243, 0, 9)
Mike Fontenot, SS (.221, 4, 16)
Chris Stewart, C (.213, 3, 10)
Ryan Vogelsong, RHP (11-7, 2.68 ERA; batting, .220, 0, 2)

Dodgers (77-76, third NL West, 11 games back)
Dee Gordon, SS (.291, 0, 9)
Jamey Carroll, 2B (.286, 0, 14)
Matt Kemp, CF (.321, 34, 113)
Juan Rivera, LF (.297, 4, 41)
James Loney, 1B (.285, 11, 62)
Aaron Miles, 3B (.278, 3, 43)
Jerry Sands, RF (.249, 4, 26)
A.J. Ellis, C (.263, 2, 9)
Dana Eveland, LHP (2-1, 2.25 ERA; batting, .000, 0, 0)

LOS ANGELES - Winning 20 games, and becoming the first Dodgers pitcher to do so in 21 years, is accomplishment enough for Clayton Kershaw (right).

But consider that one quarter of those victories came against the defending World Series champions. And that four of his five victories over the Giants came at the expense of a two-time Cy Young Award winner, Tim Lincecum, a guy whose 2011 numbers (13-13) don't reflect his ace reputation.

Going 5-0 against the Giants in six starts, with a 1.07 ERA, might be the most impressive number. Unless it's going 4-0 in his four starts against Lincecum, with an 0.29 ERA.

"I think, more than anything, it's just, 'Don't overthink it,' " Kershaw said after Tuesday night's 2-1 victory over San Francisco and Lincecum put him in the 20 win column for the first time in his career.

"You have a tendency sometimes when you're facing the same team over and over again to try and change things. For me, it's using the same things that have been successful in the past.

"With them, they bring out a lot of different lineups. They've had injuries all year, and every lineup I see is different. So I didn't really change too much."

Maybe not changes as much as tweaks.