Kershaw says goodbye: Possible LAST home appearance with the Dodgers

The final pitch was a fastball in the lower zone, which struck out Rafael Devers. This was the first out of the fifth inning and possibly Clayton Kershaw’s last pitch at Dodger Stadium.Kershaw, who announced his retirement at the end of the season, received hugs from the infielders as he saw Dodgers manager Dave Roberts come out of the dugout to take him out of his final regular season home start. Roberts, his manager for the last 10 years, shook Kershaw’s hand, hugged him, shared a few words, and then watched as the left-handed pitcher, who could enter the Hall of Fame, received a thunderous standing ovation from a sellout crowd.Kershaw lifted his cap towards the fans, embraced his teammates in the dugout, and then went out once more to greet the public.At 37 years old, Kershaw was not at his best in this matchup against the San Francisco Giants. He gave up four walks, had several prolonged at-bats, and allowed a couple of runs. But, as he has often done in recent years, he found a way to navigate a game and left his team with a chance to win.The Dodgers were losing 2-1 when Kershaw left, but they managed a 6-3 victory, securing their thirteenth consecutive postseason berth.

“I wouldn’t change it,” Kershaw said. “Perfect night.”

Clayton Kershaw

The night began with Kershaw alone on the mound. His teammates stayed in the dugout for a moment, wanting to give Kershaw and the Dodgers fans a moment to themselves. Kershaw urged them to return to the field and allowed a home run by Heliot Ramos on his third pitch of the game. He ended up throwing 23 pitches in the first inning, then walked a batter and committed an error.

He did something similar in the second, granting a couple of walks before inducing a couple of infield fly balls. And in the third, which featured a double by Matt Chapman and an RBI single by Wilmer Flores. And in the fourth, where he navigated an opening hit. But he limited the damage.

Kershaw finished the top of the fourth inning by striking out Willy Adames, ending a nine-pitch at-bat and bringing his pitch count to 86. Roberts didn’t even look at him as he approached the dugout, wanting to give Kershaw one last batter so he could take him out mid-inning. It came in the form of Devers, one of the most dangerous hitters in the sport. Kershaw retired him with his 91st pitch, resulting in his sixth strikeout, a fitting conclusion to what could be the end of his career at Dodger Stadium.Shortly after, Kershaw cheered as Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts hit back-to-back home runs to give the Dodgers a three-run lead with a four-run fifth inning.

“It wasn’t his best,” Roberts said, “but like he does, he just finds ways to compete, get outs and put us in a position to win a ballgame.”

Dave RobertsKershaw is scheduled to make another regular season start next week. But given the depth and talent in the Dodgers’ rotation, his role on the team’s postseason roster is very uncertain.In an 18-year career, all of it in Los Angeles, Kershaw won three Cy Young awards and an MVP, has accumulated 222 regular season wins, 11 behind Don Sutton for the franchise record, and has a career ERA of 2.54, which is the second-lowest among those who have pitched at least 1,500 innings in the live-ball era. Friday’s game was attended by Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, his childhood friend, and several former teammates, including Austin Barnes, Russell Martin, Jimmy Rollins, Trayce Thompson, A.J. Pollock and Andre Ethier.Ethier was in the starting lineup when Kershaw made his Major League debut at Dodger Stadium on May 25, 2008, and finished with the winning hit.