More than one week has passed since Clayton Kershaw’s mother, Marianne Tombaugh, passed away. Her death came three days before Kershaw was scheduled to start for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the middle game of a series with the Minnesota Twins.
Kershaw had the option to go on the bereavement list but he remained with the team and labored through his outing against the Twins. The 35-year-old also traveled with the Dodgers for the start of their road trip and took the mound in the series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Kershaw struggled again Sunday, completing just 3.2 innings before coming out after throwing 95 pitches and allowing four runs.
Next is a start against the Tampa Bay Rays in the second game of a series with the Tampa Bay Rays. However, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Kershaw will first go on bereavement leave, according to Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
He will leave the Dodgers for a few days to attend a service for her and be placed on the bereavement list.
MLB roster rules require a player who was put on the bereavement list to be away from the team a minimum of three days, but no more than seven.
The Dodgers presumably will make the Kershaw roster move on Monday, which could correspond to Gavin Stone getting recalled for his start in the series opener against the Atlanta Braves. L.A. may also look to use Kershaw’s bereavement leave as a way to add a relief pitcher to their overworked bullpen.
After taking the loss on Sunday, Kershaw is 6-4 with a 2.98 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 10 starts this season. He’s hit a bit of a rough patch in May after being named National League Pitcher of the Month for April.
Clayton Kershaw grateful for support
While speaking with media following his first start since his mother passed away, Kershaw expressed his gratitude for all the well-wishes.
“Just wanted to say thank you, everybody, for the condolences and everything,” Kershaw said. “Everybody, fans, people, everybody reaching out. It’s been humbling to see how many people have reached out, and I’m thankful for that. She was a great lady, and just thank you for everybody that has reached out. It’s really nice.”
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