LOS ANGELES (AP) — Clayton Kershaw pitched the ultimate regular-season house recreation of his 18-year profession with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday, welcomed and despatched off with standing ovations a day after asserting his decision to retire at season’s finish.
Kershaw’s longtime warmup track, “We Are Younger” by Enjoyable, blared as followers held up digital camera telephones to seize the second as the sport started. The cheers shortly turned to boos when San Francisco Giants leadoff hitter Heliot Ramos turned on an 86-mph slider for a 431-foot house run.
However the cheers returned after Rafael Devers took a known as third strike main off the fifth. Supervisor Dave Roberts got here to the mound and hugged Kershaw as his teammates on the sector, within the dugout and within the bullpen joined the sellout crowd of 53,037 in applauding the 37-year-old left-hander as he departed.
Kershaw left with the Dodgers trailing 2-1. He gave up two runs and 4 hits, struck out six and walked 4 in 4 1/3 innings on 91 pitches, 56 for strikes.
The defending World Collection champion Dodgers rallied for a 6-3 victory to clinch their thirteenth consecutive postseason berth.
He waved after which wrapped his arms round himself in a hug gesture to the group. Two-way famous person Shohei Ohtani stepped ahead to hug Kershaw, one in all many he acquired from everybody within the dugout. With followers clamoring, Kershaw got here out for a curtain name, slowly turning round and soaking within the scene.
Followers donned No. 22 jerseys in a salute to Kershaw, though Ohtani’s No. 17 was outstanding as regular.
Kershaw was surrounded by teammates, his pregnant spouse Ellen, who was in tears, their 4 kids, and followers who’ve watched him work his approach by way of the Dodgers’ farm system to achieve the majors at age 20 and go on to win three Cy Young Awards in addition to two World Collection championships.
Additionally available have been former teammate Russell Martin, who caught Kershaw’s main league debut in 2008, and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was Kershaw’s highschool soccer teammate in Texas.
“That is a type of moments that individuals are going to look again and go, ‘I used to be there for the final time he began a house recreation at Dodger Stadium,’” Roberts stated earlier than the sport.
Kershaw, a Dallas native who lives there within the offseason, has spent his total 18-year profession in Los Angeles.
“In a world that folks take the simple approach out, chase quick cash, the grass is greener form of adage, the loyalty a part of it’s simply not what it was,” Roberts stated. “Clayton lives by these values and it means one thing for him to put on the identical uniform. That’s the place I gained plenty of respect for him.”
Amongst Kershaw’s milestone moments within the metropolis was reaching 3,000 career strikeouts in July.
The Dodgers added a Kershaw bobblehead to their promotional schedule in July after he reached the milestone and the merchandise might be given out Saturday. He’ll deal with the followers earlier than Sunday’s recreation.
“All people who’s only a fan goes to wrap their arms round Clayton Kershaw,” teammate Freddie Freeman stated. “He deserves every thing he’s going to get from the followers.”
Whereas his velocity has dipped lately, Kershaw’s famed aggressive hearth nonetheless burns brightly.
“Profitable is at all times my favourite factor,” he stated.
Kershaw has battled accidents lately that made getting up to now all of the tougher. He missed your complete postseason final yr, when the Dodgers beat the New York Yankees within the World Collection.
“Not lots of people get this chance,” he stated, “so I’m simply tremendous grateful for it.”
Roberts stated it was too early to say whether or not Kershaw would make one other begin subsequent week, when the Dodgers go to Arizona and Seattle to conclude the common season.
This story has been up to date to appropriate that this might be Kershaw’s final house begin within the common season, not his final regular-season begin general.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
