Clayton Kershaw began a rehab assignment on June 19 but the Los Angeles Dodgers shut him down after he experienced left shoulder soreness following a start with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga.
Kershaw allowed one run and collected five strikeouts over three innings in his outing with the Quakes. It represented his first time on a mound since a disastrous outing in Game 1 of the 2023 National League Division Series.
Kershaw had been tentatively scheduled to make a rehab start for Triple-A Oklahoma City, but instead was shut down because of the left shoulder trouble. The Dodgers nevertheless remained optimistic as an MRI did not reveal a new injury.
The 36-year-old is now expected to resume his throwing program in the coming days, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
Left-hander Clayton Kershaw is expected to resume a throwing program this week.
The MRI result not showing any structural damage was a good sign for Kershaw and now it appears he will soon continue his throwing program after about a week of down time.
It isn’t clear when Kershaw will pick back up with his rehab assignment — or which Minor League affiliate that will be with — but he figures to need a minimum of three more starts before potentially rejoining the Dodgers.
When will Clayton Kershaw return?
When Kershaw underwent left shoulder surgery during the offseason, initial projections had him returning to a big league mound at some point in the second half of 2024.
That still appears to be the case, even if it now comes in August instead of late July. Before his setback of sorts, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted that Kershaw was ahead of schedule in his recovery and would return to the team sometime after the All-Star break.
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