When the Los Angeles Dodgers took the field on Opening Day this year, Clayton Kershaw was not on the mound for the first time since 2010.
The team’s ace began the season on the 10-day injured list due to a shoulder issue that he dealt with during Spring Training. While Kershaw has since returned, he hasn’t looked like his usual dominant self.
The left-hander nonetheless has found a way to still get outs. In his first five starts of the season, Kershaw is 2-0 with a 3.31 ERA, 3.78 FIP and 0.98 WHIP with 31 strikeouts and six walks in 32.2 innings.
After Kershaw’s latest start against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts assessed Kershaw’s season to this point. “No. 1, he’s healthy and he’s making his starts, so that’s the most important thing for us,” Roberts said.
“Him taking the mound obviously sends a message to everybody in the league, to our clubhouse. Outside of that, I really don’t look at the numbers. I look at days that he starts, if he’s healthy we expect to win. Has it been as dominating as he would expect or like?
“Probably not, but there are good hitters in this league. The main thing is that Clayton is going out there every fifth day and getting guys out, and giving us a chance to win every time he steps on the mound.”
Kershaw allowed nine hits and four runs in 6.2 innings against the Braves to earn his second victory of the season. He became a victim of soft contact in his final inning of work which cost him a couple earned runs, but overall, Roberts was pleased with his outing.
“I thought Clayton really grinded. I thought there were many times he had really good fastball command, he was just missing in to some of those left-handed hitters,” Roberts said.
“I thought it was coming out really well, I thought the slider was good at times, his curveball. But again, that’s a really good lineup over there. You look at towards the end of his outing, some grounders that were soft contact. I thought he pitched well enough to win, which he did.”
Kershaw’s velocity may be down and he might not be striking out batters at the rate he was earlier in his career, but the bottom line is that he is still finding a way to win games. The Dodgers are 5-0 in his starts this season and dating back to 2018, they are 13-0 in his last 13 regular-season outings.
