Clayton Kershaw is out for the remainder of this postseason due to a toe damage. However he seems to don’t have any plans this offseason to name it a profession.
Earlier than Recreation 2 of the Nationwide League Championship Sequence, Kershaw advised the Fox Sports activities pregame present that he’s planning to play in 2025, when he can train a participant possibility to stick with the Dodgers or (in a way more unlikely situation) decide out of his deal and check free company for a 3rd straight winter.
“Mentally, I feel great,” Kershaw mentioned. “I had shoulder surgery last offseason, and my shoulder and elbow, everything, my arm, feels great.
“Obviously, I had some tough luck with my foot this year. But I want to make use of this surgery. I don’t want to have surgery and shut it down. So I’m gonna come back next year and give it a go and see how it goes.”
The 36-year-old Kershaw, who could be getting into his 18th MLB season in 2025, pitched in solely seven video games this 12 months after lacking the primary 4 months of the common season recovering from offseason shoulder surgical procedure.
Although Kershaw’s fastball averaged lower than 90 mph, he was 2-2 with a 3.72 ERA in his first six begins, and he was in line for a potential postseason rotation spot on the Dodgers’ injury-plagued pitching workers.
However then, on Aug. 30, the damage bug bit Kershaw.
In a begin towards the Arizona Diamondbacks, a bone spur on Kershaw’s proper massive toe flared up so dangerous he was compelled to depart the sport within the second inning. He went on the injured listing the next day.
Regardless of attempting to proceed to throw over the ultimate month of the common season, in hopes of constructing a return in time for the playoffs, Kershaw’s toe didn’t cooperate. Forward of the NLDS, supervisor Dave Roberts dominated him out for the remainder of the postseason.
It’s unclear if Kershaw, who’s simply 32 strikeouts away from 3,000 in his profession, can be prepared for the beginning of the 2025 season.
He acknowledged earlier this month that surgical procedure on his toe is “in the conversation” for this offseason.
Kershaw additionally developed different bodily points whereas injured that he mentioned resulted from attempting to compensate from his toe damage in throwing workouts. One affected space, in response to an individual with data of the state of affairs who wasn’t approved to talk publicly, was Kershaw’s indirect.
Regardless of all that, the Dodgers may nonetheless use the three-time Cy Younger Award winner and former MVP of their 2025 rotation — which is able to probably be hampered by restricted workloads from Shohei Ohtani, Dustin Might and Tony Gonsolin as they return from elbow surgical procedures.
“Obviously I don’t want to get hurt all the time,” Kershaw mentioned lately, having gone on the IL a minimum of as soon as in each season since 2016. “Like, it’s not fun to do that.”
“But,” he added, “I also really love to pitch, too.”
Roberts silences the critics
There was elation and exhaustion, pleasure and vindication, however the overwhelming emotion that Roberts felt after a grueling five-game Nationwide League Division Sequence win over the San Diego Padres was “relief.”
Not simply because the Dodgers vanquished their pesky division rivals to advance to the NL Championship Sequence towards the New York Mets, however as a result of Roberts silenced a big phase of the workforce’s fan base that might have referred to as for his head if the Dodgers suffered a 3rd straight first-round playoff exit.
“Unfortunately, the reality is, that’s the nature of this business,” Roberts mentioned. “I could argue that we’ve won a lot in my tenure here, but when you’re in this market, it’s still about winning championships.
“People don’t want to hear about the uncertainty of [October] baseball, how you can’t predict who the World Series champion is gonna be. I don’t do any of the social media, but to be honest, you can kind of feel [the pressure] around you.”
Roberts has one of the best successful proportion (.627) of any supervisor with a minimum of 1,300 video games, having guided the Dodgers to an 851-506 document, eight division titles, 9 playoff appearances and three World Sequence — successful in 2020 — in 9 seasons. However each October, it appears Roberts is managing to avoid wasting his job, and albeit, he’s uninterested in it.
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous considering the body of work that I’ve been a part of, the stuff that I do on the business side and the community relations side, my history with the Dodgers,” Roberts mentioned. “But it is what it is.”
Roberts has made his share of regrettable October choices, however he redeemed himself within the eyes of critics along with his deft bullpen administration towards the Padres, steering eight relievers by an 8-0 Recreation 4 win and 4 by 4 hitless innings in a 2-0 Recreation 5 win.
“I thought he was surgical in Game 4 and 5,” mentioned Andrew Friedman, the workforce’s president of baseball operations. “I thought he had the pulse and the right feel for when to make a move and who to go to.”
Roberts additionally stored the workforce collectively by his “most challenging season,” one which featured a slew of pitching accidents and the lack of Mookie Betts for 2 months and Max Muncy for 3 months.
“The number of injuries we withstood was a little deflating to the clubhouse,” Friedman mentioned. “They’re out there battling, doing everything they can to accomplish our goal of winning the division, and things keep happening. Doc’s relentless optimism helped keep things positive and moving forward.”
Hip verify
Gavin Lux tweaked his right-hip flexor breaking out of the field on his fourth-inning bunt Sunday evening and was pulled from the sport within the seventh inning. Lux was not within the lineup for Recreation 2 however was accessible to pinch-hit.
Even when the left-handed-hitting Lux have been wholesome, he most likely wouldn’t have began towards Mets left-hander Sean Manaea in Recreation 2. With relaxation and Tuesday’s off-day, “it will give me a little extra time to recover,” Lux mentioned. “It’s just wear and tear. I’ll be fine.”
No strain
Rookie reliever Ben Casparius had no concept when he took the mound within the ninth inning Sunday evening that the Dodgers have been on the verge of tying the 1966 Baltimore Orioles for the longest consecutive scoreless innings streak in playoff historical past at 33.
“I found out after the game,” Casparius, who retired the aspect so as in his first profession playoff look, mentioned earlier than Recreation 2 on Monday. “I’m honestly glad it was after the game and not before it.”
