The Los Angeles Dodgers are nearly a handful of days into being without Clayton Kershaw after he was placed on the 15-day injured list due to right SI joint inflammation.
Kershaw’s injury has to do with the area of his pelvis and hip, that according to the Mayo Clinic, can cause discomfort in the buttocks or lower back, and extend down one or both legs. The SI joint is often referred to sacroiliitis.
Kershaw declined to provide specifics of his injury and discomfort, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed the trouble was in his back. The left-hander received an epidural last Thursday and admitted, “I don’t feel great right now.”
The three-time Cy Young Award also did not share details of his recovery process or throwing program, which began Sunday by playing catch.
“There’s still some soreness. And quite frankly, I don’t know if it’s from the shot, or it’s from just kind of the back itself,” Roberts said. “But that’s commonplace.
“So hopefully, [Monday] when he plays catch, it subsides and then you know, does another catch play. And I think Wednesday, we’re hoping to get a ‘pen there. So we’ll see kind of how his progression goes.”
Kershaw has dealt with various back injuries during the 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020 seasons. Last year he twice suffered from left forearm/elbow inflammation, with the second bout preventing him from pitching in the postseason.
That prevented Kershaw from resuming throwing until January, though he believed the elbow trouble was no longer an issue by the time of re-signing with the Dodgers on a one-year contract.
He certainly was in the process of validating that sentiment by going 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA, 0.73 WHIP and 32 strikeouts against three walks over five starts before being put on the IL.
Kershaw optimistic for fast return
Even with revealing to be in some discomfort last week, Kershaw expressed confidence he would make a relatively quick recovery.
“MRI looks good. Nothing structural from my MRI during Spring Training, so everything looks good there,” Kershaw said. “It’s a little sore right now but I’m confident by the time my IL stint is over, I should be pretty close to ready to go, if not ready to go.”
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