(Sports Network) - A pair of aces who delivered big performances in their season debuts go head-to-head in a marquee mound matchup this afternoon at San Diego's Petco Park, where reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy's Padres take on Brad Penny and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Peavy, who led the NL in wins, earned run average and strikeouts last season, displayed the form which earned him top pitcher honors in the Senior Circuit when he took the mound against Houston on Opening Day. The hard-nosed right- hander limited the Astros to three hits and struck out four over seven shutout frames to lead the Padres to a 4-0 victory this past Monday.

The All-Star hurler has now won 11 of his last 12 decisions dating back to last year. In that 15-start span, Peavy has yielded two earned runs or less 13 times.

The 26-year-old dominated the Dodgers as well during his stellar 2007 campaign and has owned Los Angeles over the course of his seven-year career. In 18 lifetime starts against today's opponent, Peavy is 9-1 with a sensational 2.30 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 117 1/3 innings.

Peavy went 3-0 with a 2.08 ERA in five starts versus Los Angeles last year and held the club to a .182 average at the plate.

Penny was equally as good as Peavy in his first start of the year. Facing the hapless San Francisco Giants on Monday, the powerful right-hander surrendered just four hits and a pair of walks in 6 2/3 scoreless innings to earn the win in the Dodgers' 5-0 triumph.

The 29-year-old placed third to Peavy and Arizona's Brandon Webb in last year's NL Cy Young voting and put together his best season in 2007. Penny won 13 of his first 14 decisions en route to a 16-4 record, while his 3.03 ERA for the year was third-best among NL hurlers.

Penny only threw once against the Padres last season and received a no decision despite giving up just one run on five hits while fanning seven over seven innings. He was matched up opposite Peavy in that game, a 3-1 San Diego win in 12 innings.

However, Penny is just 3-6 lifetime against the Padres with a 5.61 ERA in 14 starts.

Strong starting pitching was also the theme in Friday's opener of this three- game series, as the Dodgers' Hiroki Kuroda and San Diego's Justin Germano dueled for six innings before Los Angeles erupted for six runs in the seventh to post a 7-1 victory.

Kuroda, an 11-year veteran of the Japanese Central League who signed with Los Angeles during the offseason, was terrific in his first major league start. The 33-year-old gave up just one run on three hits and did not walk a batter to nail down his first win as a Dodger.

Germano allowed one unearned run and three hits before exiting after six innings. Reliever Joe Thatcher (0-1) wasn't nearly as sharp, as the lefty was tagged for four runs on three walks and a single and retired only one batter.

Russell Martin snapped a 1-1 tie with a run-scoring single off Thatcher and finished with two RBI for Los Angeles. Teammate Andre Ethier also knocked in two runs in the win.

Brian Giles homered off Kuroda in the sixth inning to account for San Diego's lone run.

San Diego finished with a 10-8 edge on the Dodgers in last year's season series and won six of the nine matchups played at Petco Park. Los Angeles is just 7-12 in San Diego since the start of the 2006 season.