Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw ‘Felt Great’ After Throwing Session
Shortly after the Los Angeles Dodgers reported to Spring Training in February, Clayton Kershaw was shut down with shoulder inflammation. Here’s an update on his status.
On Monday, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw threw off a mound for the first time since being shut down back on February 22. According to the Los Angeles Times, Kershaw “tossed 20 pitches, all fastballs.”
Everyone felt great about how the ace starter looked during the session. Kershaw said he “felt great,” while Pitching coach Rick Honeycutt thought the lefty looked “excellent.”
Clayton Kershaw has been battling injuries for the better part of five seasons now, averaging 27 starts and 187 IP per season since 2014. Despite a decrease in velocity in that time, however, Kershaw has managed to maintain his dominance on the mound, pitching to a lower ERA (2.12), WHIP (0.892), and FIP (2.34) than his career averages.
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Despite the fact that things are moving in the right direction for Kershaw, manager Dave Roberts hasn’t ruled out the possibility of the lefty starting the season on the injured list. This would put Kershaw’s consecutive Opening Day starts streak at risk.
When asked how he felt about potentially missing his opening day start, Kershaw was a little uncertain.
“Yes because I’ve got a little streak going and just the history behind it is pretty cool. But no in the fact that it’s not worth just one game out of [many], so you got to kind of weigh that back and forth. Yes and no.”
With only two weeks left before Opening Day, it’s probably best that Kershaw not rush his return for the sake of a meaningless streak. Especially since the Dodgers extended the southpaw for 3-years, $93M immediately after losing their second consecutive World Series.
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If the team wants to continue to compete for a world championship, it is imperative that Kershaw be available for the long haul.