PHOENIX -- Cody Ransom made his first homer of the season a memorable one, lifting a two-run shot off all-star Clayton Kershaw in the seventh inning to help the Arizona Diamondbacks rally for a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers and avoid a three-game sweep on Sunday. Kelly Johnson hit two-run homer to the pool deck in right-centre off Kershaw (13-5) in the first inning and Ransoms shot to left to put the Diamondbacks back ahead. Ian Kennedy (14-3) pitched seven effective innings to win his sixth straight start and J.J Putz worked a perfect ninth for his 26th save to keep Arizona within a half-game of the NL West-leading Giants. James Loney homered for the Dodgers and Kershaw had his five-game winning streak end after failing to reach the seventh inning. Unlike the series first two games, which included some shaky pitching performances, the finale figured to be tightly matched with two of the NLs best pitchers on the mound. Kershaw, the NL strikeouts leader, had a superb first half of the season to get an invite to the all-star game in Phoenix and had been dominant since the Midsummer Classic, allowing four earned runs in 30 innings to win all four of his starts. Kennedy has been Arizonas best pitcher, ranking second in the NL in wins while setting a career high and has pitched at least seven innings 13 times. The right-hander beat the Giants on the road his last start, allowing two runs on six hits with seven strikeouts in eight innings. It didnt start off like a matchup of No. 1 pitchers. Kennedy needed a strikeout to escape a jam in the first inning and Kershaw opened the bottom half with seven straight balls before giving up the two-run homer to Johnson. The two aces looked more the part after that, with Kershaw piling up the Ks -- seven over four innings -- and Kennedy getting the Dodgers to pound balls into the ground, setting up two nice plays in the hole by Ransom at shortstop. Kennedy made a mistake in the fifth inning, leaving a 1-2 breaking ball up that Loney lifted over the pool for a leadoff homer. The right-hander got into more trouble the next inning, giving up an RBI double to Andre Ethier, then had to duck on a run-scoring single by Juan Rivera that put the Dodgers up 3-2. Kennedy allowed three runs on six hits in seven innings, but left with the lead thanks to a mistake by Kershaw. It came in the seventh inning, when the left-hander threw a belt-high fastball down the middle and Ransom hit it out to left for a two-run homer that put the Diamondbacks up 4-3. Kershaw knew the ball was out as soon as it left the bat, squatting on the mound and looking at the dirt before he even got to first. Kershaw was pulled following a one-out double by pinch hitter Sean Burroughs after allowing four runs on five hits. NOTES: Dodgers SS Dee Gordon was out of the lineup after leaving Saturdays game with a jammed right shoulder. He was injured while taking a tumble running down Kelly Johnson in the third inning. ... Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson was back in the dugout after leaving in the second inning of Saturdays game because he was feeling sick. ... The Dodgers move on to face Philadelphia at home in a three-game series that starts Monday. Right-hander Hiroki Kuroda gets the nod for Los Angeles after beating San Diego his last start for his first win since July 1. Kuroda pitched seven scoreless innings on Tuesday, allowing four hits and striking out eight. ... Arizona continues its homestand with four games against the Astros, starting Monday. Right-hander Daniel Hudson, coming off a big road win over the Giants his last time out, gets the ball for the Diamondbacks against Wandy Rodriguez. ... Hudson is 11-3 with a 3.25 earned-run average over his last 19 starts. Cheap Jerseys China . 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Karstens (5-3) gave up seven hits, did not walk a batter and struck out four for his first victory in nine career starts against Milwaukee. Karstens also had an RBI single and scored during Pittsburghs four-run fifth inning. BOSTON -- Red Sox owner John Henry is backing Bobby Valentine in his first season as manager while Boston hovers around the .500 mark. Henry said on Monday that management is not making a managerial change, and he cited numerous injuries as one reason for the teams struggles. In an email to reporters, Henry said that it is "simply wrong" to blame Valentine for the teams troubles, and "we all" share responsibility. He also said there has been no lack of effort by players. The Red Sox have spent most of the season in last place in the AL East and have never been in first or second. A total of 23 players have spent 27 stints on the disabled list, both the highest on the team since 1971. Bostons 23 players on the disabled list are the most in baseball this year. San Diego and Washington are tied for second with 19. "A lot has been written about injuries to key players this year," Henry wrote. "The impact of that on the Sox this year should not be discounted." First-year general manager Ben Cherington also voiced support for Valentine. "Bobbys our manager, and were not looking at anyone else," Cherington said in the Boston dugout before Monday nights game against the Texas Rangers. "Hes as committed to managing the team as he ever has been, and were committed to him and trying to do everything we can to support him and make this work." The Red Sox began the day with a 54-55 record, 4 1-2 games behind foor the second AL wild card.dddddddddddd. Henry and Valentine met in the managers office after Saturdays 6-4 loss to the Minnesota Twins. "He wanted to come in and say it was a tough loss, which it was," Valentine said Monday, giving no other details of the meeting. Talk about a managers job security "comes with the territory," Valentine said. "I just come to work and try to do the best that I can do." In his email, Henry said "We have been nothing but supportive of (Valentine) inside and outside of the clubhouse. Stories that imply otherwise are due to speculation that is not warranted at all by the facts." He also said managers often are given too much credit and blame for a teams performance. "There is often the thought in organizations, This isnt working so the manager needs to go. But an organization is much more than the field manager," Henry said. "We all share responsibility for the success and failure of the Boston Red Sox. We are not making a change in manager." Cherington echoed that, saying more than just the manager is responsible for the mediocre season. "Weve got to perform better as a team, and there are a lot of people here responsible for our performance. I am, the front office is, Bobby is, the coaching staff, the players," Cherington said. "Collectively, were not performing the way we expect to, and thats on us collectively to figure it out." ' ' '