VERO BEACH, Fla. (AP) – Esteban Loaiza is making a strong case to lock up the No. 5 spot in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation.

Facing some of Boston’s best hitters and outpitching Daisuke Matsuzaka, Loaiza delivered what he and manager Joe Torre called his best outing of the spring Sunday.

The 36-year-old right-hander worked three innings, allowing two doubles and two walks in a 4-0 victory over the Red Sox. He struck out four of his 13 batters, including David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and Mike Lowell.

Another candidate down the road could be Clayton Kershaw, who despite having just 159 innings of experience in the minors also kept Boston’s lineup quiet. Kershaw earned his way into big league camp Sunday, a decision made just before the game.

The 19-year-old Kershaw pitched one inning and retired all three batters he faced, striking out Sean Casey to end the fourth.

Looking at his own rotation, Red Sox manager Terry Francona hopes to see some improvements from Matsuzaka, who allowed three hits and three runs in three-plus innings. He walked three and struck out five.

The right-hander threw 72 pitches and gave up a three-run homer to Matt Kemp in the first inning.

“He ran into some deep counts when he probably didn’t need to,” Francona said.

“During the regular season, we don’t want to see that.”

Notes: Second baseman Chin-lung Hu’s leadoff single in the second was Los Angeles’ final hit of the game. … A Holman Stadium attendance record was set Sunday, as 9,293 fans witnessed Torre’s last game managing in Vero Beach. The Dodgers are on the road Monday against the Orioles, and a split squad will travel to Orlando on Tuesday to get ready for Wednesday’s 18-hour flight to China, where the Dodgers will play two exhibition games against San Diego.