The Los Angeles Dodgers welcomed Clayton Kershaw back ahead of the MLB trade deadline with the hope their legendary starting pitcher could provide help to a rotation decimated by injuries. It now appears Los Angeles has significant concerns regarding their long-time starter.
Kershaw, age 36, underwent surgery in November 2023 to repair damage to ligaments and the capsule in his left shoulder. Los Angeles later re-signed him in February, understanding he would miss the first half of the regular season.
The future Hall of Famer experienced setbacks in his recovery, not making his first appearance with the Dodgers until July 25. In his first two starts off the injured list, Kershaw has surrendered 9 earned runs with 18 base runners allowed in only 7.2 innings pitched.
Of even greater concern, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Dodgers organization is privately concerned about Kershaw and how he’s looked since coming off the injured list.
- Clayton Kershaw contract: $5 million salary in 2024, $5 million player option for 2025
The 6-foot-4 southpaw is barely averaging 90 mph on his fastball, per FanGraphs and the velocity on his spillter has dropped off by nearly 2 mph (84.4 to 82.6) compared to last season. Just as alarming, Kershaw has only generated a 29 percent Chase rate and 20.5 percent Whiff rate, according to Baseball Savant.
While the Dodgers welcomed back Tyler Glasnow and pulled off a Jack Flaherty trade before the MLB deadline, starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto is likely a month out from a return. If Kershaw doesn’t turn things around, Los Angeles is one more injury away from having real issues with its pitching depth.
