Clayton Kershaw has no intention of retiring anytime soon

If Clayton Kershaw retired tomorrow, the Los Angeles Dodgers ace would easily be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

In 13 seasons, he’s racked up three Cy Young awards, an MVP award, 2526 strikeouts, and has a career ERA of 2.43. After such a storied career, it’s natural to think he’s bound hang up the cleats sometime soon.

But Kershaw says he has plenty left in the tank.

Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw has no intention of retiring anytime soon

As incredible as his career has been, Kershaw is still only 32. And while the prime of his career may be behind him, he’s still an extremely effective pitcher. In 2020, he posted an ERA of 2.16 in 58.1 innings with a K/9 rate of 9.6.

So why are we even asking if Kershaw is ready to call it a career? Why are we trying to push him out the door?

Personally, I’d rather soak up every pitch of one of the greatest to ever do it while we still have the chance. If Kershaw can continue to post numbers like this for the next 3-5 years, he may go down in history as the best left-hander of all time. He may not blow batter away in the twilight of his career like in days past.

His fastball velocity has ticked down from 94 mph in 2015 to 91 mph in 2020. But his renaissance years as a crafty lefty are only just beginning.

The trademark curveball will always be an effective out pitch and the slider has become a bigger part of his repertoire every year.

At the end of the day, Kershaw simply has no reason to retire. He’s accomplished everything he could hope to personally accomplish in his career, and now he’s just here to try to win more championships. As long as the Dodgers are a playoff team, he isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.