Kershaw-Fernandez, 3 key races featured on MLB.TV

The doom and gloom when Clayton Kershaw went to the disabled list in late June has been replaced by Dodger Blue skies in September. Kershaw is back on the mound, and the Dodgers have themselves five games of daylight atop the National League West standings.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner will return to action on Friday night when the Dodgers open a three-game set at the Miami Marlins, who will feature young ace Jose Fernandez in the opener as they begin a series that will be crucial to their chances to remain relevant in the NL Wild Card race.

• Standings

The pitchers’ duel is the MLB.TV Free Game of the Day and highlights a full slate of 15 games on Friday that includes the Red Sox and Blue Jays vying for supremacy in the American League East and a host of other games with potential postseason implications.

And the best place to watch all the drama unfold is on MLB.TV.

MLB.TV Premium has returned with the same features as last year, and is only $24.99 for the rest of the season. This package has the best value and provides access to more than 400 devices and a free subscription to the MLB.com At Bat Premium app (a $19.99 value). It offers the best picture quality ever — a new 60 frames per second — for supported devices.

Here’s what to watch for today in the Majors (all times ET):

Back in the saddle: LAD@MIA, 7:05 p.m. Since Kershaw last pitched on June 26, the Dodgers have gained a full 13 games on the rival Giants. Los Angeles fell to eight games behind San Francisco as of Kershaw’s disabling injury with a herniated disk, and it enters the weekend five games up.

Kershaw will be on an unspecified but limited pitch count for his first start back, coming off a Minor League rehabilitation start with Class A Advanced Rancho Cucamonga in which he threw 35 pitches on the game mound and another 15 in the bullpen afterward. As much as the Dodgers are eager to see their ace back on the mound, Kershaw has to be thrilled at joining a club that has flipped the division race on its ear since his departure.

“For Clayton to watch his teammates play for this length of time, it was killing him,” manager Dave Roberts said. “To be active again and help us win a baseball game, he’s over the moon.”

Fernandez, meanwhile, needs to put a rough outing in Cleveland behind him to give his club a chance to start chipping away at the five-game deficit they have for a Wild Card spot. The …

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