Clayton Kershaw had a historic performance Saturday night, but it came in a no-decision of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 5-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers.
Kershaw entered his fourth start of the season needing only four strikeouts to overtake Don Sutton for the most in franchise history. Kershaw struck out one batter in each of the first four innings to accomplish the feat.
He got Spencer Torkelson swinging to surpass Sutton on the Dodgers’ all-time strikeouts list. It was met by a prolonged standing ovation from fans, which Kershaw acknowledged by twice stepping off the mound and tipping his cap.
“It’s special. I didn’t expect it,” Kershaw said of the reaction. “I understand the Dodgers are a historical franchise and been around a long time, so guys that are on that list that I was fortunate enough to pass, it’s a big deal.
“But I didn’t know fans would know or honestly care that much. So it was special for me. It really was. It was cool to see. I tried to kind of brush it off and keep going, but they wouldn’t let me. It definitely meant a lot, for sure.”
Kershaw wound up reaching 2,700 career strikeouts, becoming just the 26th pitcher in MLB history with at least that many.
While the three-time Cy Young Award winner was able to recognize the significance of his accomplishment, he lamented it coming in a loss.
“Wish we won, but it was a great moment for me personally,” Kershaw said. “I’ll remember that for a while.”
Kershaw family witnessed history
Ellen Kershaw and the couple’s four children were among the sold-out crowd at Dodger Stadium, which Clayton Kershaw certainly was mindful of and took notice of their celebrating his moment.
“I saw Ellen trying to wrangle three kids in the stands up there, and I wanted to know where the fourth one was,” he joked. “Having them be here, be able to celebrate and see them, see how excited they were for me, is cool. They’ve been on this journey too for a long time.”
Are you following Dodger Blue on Instagram? It’s the best way to see exclusive coverage from games and events, get your questions answered, and more!
