Opposite dugout: Strasburg vs. Kershaw highlights Nats-Dodgers in L.A.

Manager: Dave Roberts (1st season)

Record: 38-33

Last 10 games: 6-4

Who to watch: SS Corey Seager (.280/.342/.502 with 15 HR, 36 RBIs), 1B Adrian Gonzalez (.274 with 32 RBIs), CF Joc Pederson (12 HR, 31 RBIs), LHP Clayton Kershaw (10-1, 1.58 ERA), RHP Kenley Jansen (1.59 ERA with 19 saves)

Season series vs. Nationals: First meeting (4-2 in 2015)

Pitching probables:

June 20: RHP Stephen Strasburg vs. LHP Clayton Kershaw, 10:10 p.m., MASN2
June 21: RHP Tanner Roark vs. LHP Scott Kazmir, 10:10 p.m., MASN2
June 22: RHP Joe Ross vs. LHP Julio Urias, 10:10 p.m., MASN2

Inside the Dodgers:

As the Nationals continue their West Coast trip by heading up the California coast to Los Angeles, their three-game series against the Dodgers is highlighted by tonight's pitching matchup between Stephen Strasburg and Clayton Kershaw. The baseball world will be staying up late tonight to see two of the sport's best go head-to-head.

Strasburg and Kershaw are looking to join the Cubs' Jake Arrieta and the White Sox's Chris Sale as 11-game winners. Strasburg was the first to reach the 10-win mark and is the only undefeated qualified starter remaining. Meanwhile, Kershaw has won eight of his last nine starts, with the Dodgers still winning the only no-decision.

Kershaw leads the majors with a 1.58 ERA, 0.66 WHIP, 4.4 WAR and a 133/7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He's built to go deep into games, also leading the major leagues with 108 innings pitched and going at least seven innings in all but one of his 14 starts this season. B he's not totally unbeatable, even at Dodger Stadium: His one loss this season came at home, where he has a 1.31 ERA. In his career, Kershaw is 9-2 with a 2.09 ERA against the Nationals.

Scott Kazmir will be the second of three left-handers first-year skipper Dave Roberts will be starting against the Nationals this week. Kazmir is 5-3 with a 4.64 ERA. The Dodgers went through a stretch at the beginning of the season where they lost four of his starts in a row, when he went 0-2, and are coming off their first back-to-back losses in Kazmir starts since then, even though he earned no-decisions in each outing. He is 1-0 with a 4.66 ERA in two career starts against the Nats, not having faced them since 2014. 19-year-old Julio Urias will be making just his sixth major league start on Wednesday night while also looking for his first win, going just 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA. Urias managed only 2 2/3 innings in his debut in New York against the Mets but managed a no-decision. His two losses have come in road starts against the Cubs and Giants, while the Dodgers have won his home starts against the Rockies and Brewers. He has only allowed one run over nine innings at home, so look for him to feel more comfortable when he takes on the Nats lineup.

The Dodgers bullpen's 3.08 ERA is the best in the National League, rounding out the club's pitching dominance. But offensively, the team does not pose that great of a threat. Shortstop Corey Seager has put together the best slash line among Dodger hitters at .280/.342/.502 and his 15 home runs are second-most in the NL behind Colorado's Trevor Story and just ahead of Danny Espinosa. First baseman Adrian Gonzalez is hitting just .274 with 32 RBIs and second baseman Chase Utley is batting .261. Center fielder Joc Pederson has knocked 12 homers and 31 RBIs, while third baseman Justin Turner has nine longballs and 30 RBIs.

The Nationals shouldn't get too down on themselves if they don't manage to get to Kershaw tonight. The next two pitching matchups and an average offensive lineup set up the Nats in a good position to still win the series before concluding their road trip in Milwaukee.