Kershaw: Dodgers legend nearing retirement, jersey collectors

Joe Musgrove and the Wish for a Clayton Kershaw Jersey

In the middle of the season, with the San Diego Padres in town for a series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, pitcher Joe Musgrove had one mission in mind: to get a signed Clayton Kershaw jersey. In the world of professional baseball, it is common for players to exchange personalized jerseys, whether to celebrate friendships, admiration, or achievements. However, Musgrove, throughout his nine years in the Major Leagues, had only requested this gesture on a few occasions, and always for former teammates. Never for a prominent member of the Padres’ biggest rival.

“This is the first time I’ve sent a signal of admiration for what someone has done for the game,” commented Musgrove, who grew up being a Padres fan before playing for the team. “I know he’s flooded with them now, and it may seem like a lot, but he’s had a huge impact on this game, not just as a player, but by the way he carries himself.”

Joe Musgrove

Kershaw prepares for his final regular season opening at Dodger Stadium, which could mark one of the last appearances of his career. Even before the news of his impending retirement became official, the possibility was so high that Major League Baseball extended a special invitation to him for this year’s All-Star Game. Several opposing players have taken the opportunity to pay tribute, whether by expressing praise, gratitude, or, often, seeking autographs. Kershaw, 37, has noticed a “slight increase” in jersey requests, but emphasizes that it’s nothing out of the ordinary. Sometimes, he goes through a home series without anyone asking him for one. Other times, he’s overwhelmed. “It’s like everyone’s talking,” Kershaw said. He signs them all, whether listing his accomplishments – 3-time National League Cy Young winner, 2014 National League MVP, 2-time World Series champion – as he wrote on one for Colorado Rockies starter Kyle Freeland, or scribbling a brief message. In his mind, it wasn’t long ago that he was on the other side.

“It’s amazing how quickly that changes, you know?” Kershaw commented last week. “You don’t think you’re the oldest until it happens, and then you are. It happens fast.”

Clayton Kershaw

When Kershaw signed his fourth consecutive one-year contract with the Dodgers in March, he was considered a luxury. Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki had already been added. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow were recovering from injuries. Shohei Ohtani was on his way back as a two-way player. Emmet Sheehan, Tony Gonsolin, and Dustin May were next in line.

But when Kershaw rejoined the rotation in mid-May, after undergoing knee and foot surgeries in the offseason, he helped stabilize a pitching staff that, once again, had suffered an avalanche of injuries. In August, as the Dodgers’ rotation began to take shape, he found another level, winning his five starts and posting an ERA of 1.88. Kershaw is throwing the slowest fastball of his career, compensating with a slider that often lacks its traditional bite and resorting to more inventiveness than ever, even with the occasional eephus pitch. And yet, his record is 10-2 and his ERA is 3.53.

“He’s joking about only throwing 86, 87, and still getting outs,” said San Francisco Giants starter Logan Webb. “To me, that’s the most impressive thing.”

Logan Webb

Webb was 12 years old in Northern California when Kershaw debuted in the Major Leagues. His high school years coincided with a four-year period, from 2011 to 2014, in which Kershaw won three Cy Young awards and an MVP, accumulated 72 regular season wins, logged 895⅓ innings, and established himself as one of the greatest of his era. Competing against him, as a fellow frontline starter on a division rival, hasn’t diminished his shine at all.

Webb stated: “It seems to surprise me every time”.

Logan Webb

Two months ago, Webb shared an All-Star team with Kershaw for the first time and was firm in securing a jersey from him, even though, he said, “I usually feel terrible asking guys for it.” Webb will watch from the opposing dugout as Kershaw makes what could be the last appearance of his career at Dodger Stadium, depending on how he fits into Los Angeles’ October plans.

The Dodgers currently have a six-man rotation, and two of those members, Yamamoto and Snell, are practically guaranteed to start in a best-of-three wild card series. The third spot would go to Ohtani, unless the Dodgers surprise outsiders by deploying him as a reliever. Then there’s Glasnow, who was granted a contract extension of over $130 million to make important starts, and Sheehan, a promising right-handed pitcher who has been effective out of the bullpen. Kershaw wasn’t healthy enough to contribute to last year’s championship run and wants nothing more than to help with this. But he’s also realistic.

“We’ll see,” Kershaw said. “We’ll see what happens. My job is just to pitch well. Whatever decision they make, or if I can make an opening or do whatever, they’re going to make the best decision for the team. I’ll understand it either way. Obviously, what I want is to make it difficult for them.”

Clayton Kershaw

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts doesn’t know what role Kershaw could play on a postseason roster, but said “there’s a place for him” on it.

“The bottom line is I trust him,” Roberts said. “And for me, the postseason is about players you trust.”

Dave Roberts

The Rockies pitcher, Kyle Freeland, with a jersey signed by Clayton Kershaw earlier this season. Andrew Abbott, sitting next to his Cincinnati Reds teammate, Chase Burns, in the first base dugout at Dodger Stadium on August 26, couldn’t understand what he was seeing.

“Is that a change?” he asked.

Andrew Abbott

Kershaw, known for not throwing many changes, largely because he has never trusted his ability to do so, was suddenly throwing a pitch that traveled in the early 80s and moved away from opposing right-handed hitters, the continuation of a split change that he began to incorporate a couple of years ago. For Abbott, it spoke of the ingenuity that has prolonged Kershaw’s effectiveness.

“He knows what he is doing,” Abbott said. “He can just figure things out on the fly.”

Andrew Abbott

The Reds’ third-year starting pitcher had shared a locker room with Kershaw for the first time during this summer’s All-Star Game in Atlanta. He desperately wanted to ask him about the pitch sequence, but he also didn’t want to waste Kershaw’s time; he chatted about their ties to Dallas and left it at that. Six weeks later, when the Reds visited Dodger Stadium, Abbott took it upon himself to provide a visiting clubhouse attendant with a Kershaw jersey to be sent over for him to sign. He already had one from Christian Yelich, which represented his first strikeout; Edwin Díaz, the brother of his former teammate, Alexis; Joey Votto, a Reds legend; and Aaron Judge, arguably the best hitter on the planet. Initially, Abbott didn’t want to bother Kershaw, worried that he might be adding to an overwhelming pile, but he couldn’t risk missing what might be his last chance.

“I’ve watched Kersh since he was a kid,” Abbott said. “I mean, I was 9 when he debuted. I like having guys I’ve watched and idolized. Those are the ones I look for. It’s cool that you’re on the job with him too.”

Andrew Abbott

After spending the last four years playing for two of their biggest rivals, first the Padres and then the Giants, Snell signed a five-year, $182 million contract with the Dodgers during the offseason and told president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman that he wanted his locker next to Kershaw’s. Snell’s locker was next to Kershaw’s in spring training, and now resides just two lockers away inside the newly renovated Dodger Stadium home clubhouse. As a fellow lefty, Snell has tried to absorb everything he can by watching Kershaw, specifically how he uses his slider. However, he has learned that much of his success is driven by his way of thinking.

“He never gives up,” Snell said. “He’s a competitor. And you can’t, like, train that or teach that. You either have it or you don’t have it. And he’s very elite at competing. The game comes and he’s the best version of himself.”

Blake Snell

Snell arrived in the Major Leagues as a former 23-year-old first-round prospect. But he didn’t think he’d be around for long, so he set out to collect as many personalized jerseys as he could. He already has two framed Kershaw jerseys hanging on a wall in the office filled with other sports memorabilia, but the end of his first year with the Dodgers has left him wondering if he has enough.

Snell said: “I could get another one”.

Blake Snell

For those who have watched Kershaw throughout his career, the idea that he would even be allowed to be mic’d up while pitching in a game, let alone enjoy it, was a clear indication that it would probably be the end. Roberts, who managed the National League All-Stars earlier this summer, noted a more reflective and grateful side of Kershaw even before he went up to the mound for his 11th Summer Classic. Roberts noticed it when Kershaw addressed his National League teammates before the game, reminding them that this was an opportunity to honor those who brought them there. He noticed it 13 days earlier, on the night of July 2, when Kershaw finished a six-inning outing with the 3,000th strikeout of his career and poured onto the field to acknowledge the fans. Above all, he has noticed it through the ease with which Kershaw seems to behave this season. “The edges,” Roberts said, “are no longer so harsh.”

“He knows he’s had a tremendous career, and I think he’s making a point now. He’s being intentional about seizing every moment.”

Dave Roberts

Kershaw allowed himself to savor his 3,000th strikeout, a milestone only 19 other pitchers have reached, and made a conscious effort to enjoy every moment at this year’s All-Star Game. His wife, Ellen, and their four children have made it a point to travel for each of his starts this season, even as Texas schools restarted earlier this month, adding a layer of sentimentality to the final stretch. But as much as Kershaw would like to enjoy every remaining inning in his Major League career, he can’t. The season continues, the stakes keep rising, and Kershaw believes in the link between discarding success and maintaining an edge. “The moment you savor, the moment you think about success, you become complacent,” he said. But that also means he can’t truly enjoy the end. There is a cruelty in that.

“Yes”, Kershaw said, “but that’s okay. Because you want to go out competing, like you always have. At the end of the day, being healthy, being able to compete and pitch well, being on a great team, that’s all you can ask for. If you do all the other things, you settle or you feel satisfied or whatever. Then it all goes downhill”.

Clayton Kershaw