Clayton Kershaw has been on the 10-day injured list since July 7 due to left forearm inflammation and appears primed to miss at least four more weeks as he remains shut down from throwing.
“Clayton, right now he’s not playing catch,” manager Dave Roberts reiterated during his appearance at Los Angeles Dodgers All-Access on Thursday night. “As we look at the calendar, we’re going to get him healthy and expect him to be back sometime in September.
“The goal is to have him obviously pitching this year and to help us win a championship. How we get there is sort of the question with the path, but I expect him to be ready to go prior to the end of the season.”
Roberts had previously said Kershaw halted his throwing program after experiencing soreness coming out of a three-inning simulated game at Oracle Park. Kershaw had been scheduled to face batters again at Camelback Ranch this past Sunday, but was unable to do so because of lingering soreness.
Roberts at the time said that stemmed from getting back off the mound rather than being the result of any sort of setback in his recovery process.
Kershaw’s ongoing injury and absence — as well as that of Tony Gonsolin — puts further strain on a Dodgers starting rotation that already needed to be patched together heading into the All-Star break.
The group did receive a boost in the form of Max Scherzer, and because of upcoming off days, the Dodgers can get by without a fifth starter until August 14.
“I try not to be too insensitive, but for me, you’ve just got to move forward,” Roberts said of the Dodgers’ injuries this season. “I think players nowadays are more in tune with a narrative, what’s going on, and they hear everything I say.
“So I just don’t talk about injuries and adversities, because we all have them. Whether it’s as ballplayers, our club, in life. So truth of the matter is, no one feels sorry for the Dodgers. I just say we’ve got to keep going with the 26 guys we have and move forward.
“I just don’t allow for our guys to feel sorry for ourselves.”
Remaining afloat without Kershaw
In addition to Scherzer, the Dodgers also acquired Danny Duffy at the MLB trade deadline and just signed Cole Hamels for the remainder of the season.
However, neither Duffy nor Hamels are expected to return until closer to September as well. Furthermore, Duffy’s role could be out of the bullpen.
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