LOS ANGELES — After winning two Cy Young Awards in the past three seasons, Clayton Kershaw had already built a commanding reputation as the best pitcher in baseball.

Now he has another big achievement to put on his resume.

Kershaw pitched his first no-hitter Wednesday night, striking out a career-high 15 and allowing his only baserunner on a throwing error by shortstop Hanley Ramirez in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 8-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies.

Kershaw’s gem gave the Dodgers the only two no-hitters in the majors this season. Josh Beckett tossed one May 25 in Philadelphia.

“I am so amazed,” Kershaw said. “Beckett told me he was going to teach me how to do that, so I have Josh to thank.”

Cheered on by his wife in the stands, Kershaw (7-2) retired his first 18 batters before Corey Dickerson led off the seventh with a slow bouncer to Ramirez. His throw on the run went wide past first baseman Adrian Gonzalez for a two-base error ”“ ending any chance for a perfect game.

But that was it for the Rockies against Kershaw, who shrugged off the miscue and came oh-so-close to throwing the 22nd perfecto in the majors since 1900.

One batter after Dickerson reached base, rookie third baseman Miguel Rojas backhanded Troy Tulowitzki’s grounder behind the bag and let fly with a strong throw to first that Gonzalez ”“ a three-time Gold Glove winner ”“ scooped out of the dirt to keep the no-hitter intact.

With the crowd of 46,069 on its feet and roaring, Kershaw made quick work of the Rockies in the ninth.

DJ LeMahieu grounded out to first base on the first pitch of the inning and Charlie Culberson hit a lazy fly to right field on the next one. Dickerson then got four straight strikes and went down swinging.

After his 107th and final pitch, a beaming Kershaw raised his arms above his head and waited for a huge hug from catcher A.J. Ellis.

Moments later, as he was about to be interviewed on the field, Kershaw was doused by teammates with two large buckets. The left-hander with the big-breaking curve also got a hug from his wife.

Kershaw gave Los Angeles sports fans their second memorable thrill in just a few days.

The Kings won the Stanley Cup at home last Friday night, their second NHL championship in three years, and brought the famous trophy to Dodger Stadium on Tuesday for a pregame ceremony.

The only other time the Dodgers pitched two no-hitters in one season was 1956, when the team was still in Brooklyn. Carl Erskine and Sal Maglie turned the trick that year.

Ramirez was back in the lineup after leaving Tuesday night’s game with a bruised ring finger on his throwing hand, the result of a sharp grounder by Dickerson than deflected into short center field for a double.

Ramirez was replaced on defense by rookie Carlos Triunfel to start the eighth.

Kershaw missed more than six weeks early this year because of a strained muscle in his upper back, after beating Arizona in the season opener during the Dodgers’ two-game trip to Australia.

It was the 22nd no-hitter in Dodgers history and the first at home since Ramon Martinez’s 2-0 gem against the Marlins on July 14, 1995.

“As far as individual games go, this is really special. To do it at home is more amazing,” Kershaw said before looking up and thanking the crowd.

Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax, who tossed four no-hitters, pitched the franchise’s only perfect game on Sept. 9, 1965, against the Chicago Cubs.

The day after Beckett’s no-hitter, teammate Hyun-Jin Ryu took a perfect game into the eighth inning against Cincinnati before giving up a leadoff double to Todd Frazier.

“I’m in great company,” Kershaw said. “All these guys are throwing great, doing our jobs. It’s been fun so far.”

Kershaw received a standing ovation when he came to bat in the eighth, and another one minutes later after finishing the job against one of baseball’s best lineups.

The Rockies began the day leading the majors in batting average, hits, total bases, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. They were first in the NL in runs and homers.

The only left-handed batter the Rockies had in their starting lineup ”“ other than pitcher Jorge De La Rosa ”“ was Dickerson, who was in the leadoff spot for the first time since April 3.

Rojas also supported Kershaw with his bat, hitting a three-run double while continuing to fill in for injured third baseman Juan Uribe. Gonzalez and Matt Kemp each drove in two runs, helping the Dodgers complete their first three-game sweep at home this season.

De La Rosa (6-6) threw 86 pitches over 3 1-3 innings and was charged with eight runs, six hits and five walks. The left-hander is 0-3 with an 8.19 ERA in his last four starts, after going 6-0 with a 1.80 ERA during his previous seven outings.

ROYALS 2, TIGERS 1

DETROIT (AP) — Kansas City won its 10th straight game, extending its best streak in 20 years with help from Jeremy Guthrie and a lucky hop.

The Royals have not won this many games in a row since a run of 14 straight in 1994. They extended their AL Central lead over the Tigers to 1 1/2 games.

Guthrie (4-6) allowed four hits and struck out nine in 6 2-3 innings. Drew Smyly (3-6) nearly matched him, but the Detroit left-hander was hurt by Alex Gordon’s RBI single that deflected off second base in the first and a solo homer by Omar Infante in the fifth.

J.D. Martinez homered for the Tigers in the seventh, but the Kansas City bullpen got the last seven outs, with Greg Holland pitching the ninth for his 21st save in 22 chances.

REDS 11, PIRATES 4

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Alfredo Simon became the NL’s first 10-game winner and Billy Hamilton had three hits and three RBIs for Cincinnati.

Simon (10-3) allowed three runs on five hits and three walks in 6 1-3 innings and Cincinnati won for the sixth time in seven games.

Brandon Phillips, Skip Schumaker and Zack Cozart each had two of the Reds’ 14 hits in the game, which was delayed 1 hour, 15 minutes by rain in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Schumaker also had three RBIs.

Pittsburgh’s Gregory Polanco went 2 for 4 and became the second player in Pirates’ history ”“ joining Spencer Adams (1923) ”“ to have a hit in each of his first eight major league games.

ATHLETICS 4, RANGERS 2

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Brandon Moss hit a tiebreaking double in the fifth inning and Sonny Gray pitched Oakland past Texas, giving the Athletics the best record in the majors.

Yoenis Cespedes and Josh Donaldson each had two hits for the A’s. Oakland has won four of five and is a season-high 16 games over .500 at 44-28.

Gray (7-3) had won just two of his previous eight starts before going seven innings and striking out seven. Luke Gregerson pitched the eighth and Sean Doolittle worked the ninth for his ninth save.

Nick Tepesch (2-3) went five innings. Shin-Soo Choo drove in both runs for the Rangers.

YANKEES 7, BLUE JAYS 3

NEW YORK (AP) — Brian McCann hit a go-ahead, two-run homer and later added a bases-loaded triple to lead New York over first-place Toronto.

The Yankees beat Mark Buehrle for the ninth straight time and handed the Blue Jays their 15th loss in a row in the Bronx.