Clayton Kershaw has been at the center of media attention countless times throughout his future Hall of Fame career, but Thursday afternoon at Dodger Stadium was a different set of circumstances.
Kershaw took a seat in front of teammates, his wife Ellen and their children, and a throng of reporters. The 37-year-old was there to formally announce his decision to retire after the 2025 season.
Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten started the press conference with opening remarks, then turned the floor over to Kershaw. He spoke fondly about making an impact this season and how much of a joy the year has been.
Kershaw’s retirement announcement came the day before he’s scheduled to make his last regular-season start at Dodger Stadium. There’s also some uncertainty over Kershaw’s role and roster spot as the Dodgers head into the postseason with a surplus of starting pitchers.
He revealed those to be factors behind going public with retirement plans. So too was Kershaw not wanting to be a “distraction” over what he predicted would be another month-plus of the Dodgers playing baseball.
The implication, of course, being the Dodgers have a World Series run ahead of them as they look to become MLB’s first repeat champion in 25 years.
Clayton Kershaw ‘at peace’ retiring
Over recent years the Kershaw family had adopted an approach of deciding the future after each season concluded. But in this case, Clayton and Ellen sensed 2025 would be an 18th and final season with the Dodgers.
“I’m at peace with it. I think it’s the right time,” Kershaw assured.
He shared a message from Ellen and thanked teammates, Dodgers ownership and front office personnel, and longtime supporters from his native Dallas. There were several moments where he became emotional and needed to pause for tears. Kershaw’s voice particularly cracked when he addressed teammates.
“I’m really not sad. I’m really not. I’m really at peace with this,” he said. “It’s just emotional and I’ve tried to hold it together. I told our guys not to make it weird today, because I was going to get weird if they make it weird. And here I am making it weird.
“That’s all I have. Just, thank you. Everybody here that’s covered me over the years, I know I’m not the most fun at times, so thank you for putting up with me. That’s all I have. Thank you guys so much for being here.”
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