The Dodgers were awaiting the return of their veteran ace Clayton Kershaw to help stabilize a starting rotation ravaged by injuries. The 37-year-old did return after eight long months away from the mound, but far from his best. While Kershaw has shown flashes of vintage brilliance on his comeback so far, there are still question marks over his long-term consistency.
Kershaw’s first start back against the Angels didn’t go the way he or the Dodgers had hoped, as he gave up five runs in four innings and struggled with command in a way that’s rare for him. But the veteran lefty bounced back against the Mets with a solid outing, throwing two scoreless innings. Then came his best performance yet, against the Guardians, where he looked much more like his old self, allowing just one run over five innings. It’s a promising sign, but the Dodgers veteran is still not up to the mark.
Now, the Dodgers manager, Dave Roberts, has weighed in on the situation, offering his perspective on what Kershaw’s rocky return means for the team moving forward. “Kershaw has had to grind through his initial starts and is still seeking consistency in his stride,” he said.
Well, that’s an honest take. Since his return to the mound, Kershaw has struggled with consistency. With names like Blake Snell still weeks away from return, Roberts is expecting Kershaw to be consistent. But that’s not all from the team’s end. It sounds like Roberts is offering a few fixes for Kershaw. “Needs to better command his fastball and slider,” he added.
Upon his return, Kershaw’s fastball and slider have shown clear signs of being a work in progress. His fastball velocity has been noticeably down compared to his pre-injury form, now sitting in the upper 80s to low 90 MPH range, rather than the low-to-mid 90s he occasionally touched in previous seasons. So this drop has made his fastball more hittable.
As for his slider, it’s been a mixed bag. Yes, the movement is still there, but the sharpness and bite haven’t always been consistent. A long way to go for the veteran to get back to his best, quite clearly, but as Roberts said, time is ticking, and urgent fixes are required.
The Dodgers’ starting rotation is far from being the best
The Dodgers’ starting rotation was supposed to be one of the most stacked in baseball this year, but fast forward just three months, and that vision has unraveled fast. Injuries have hit hard; Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell, and Tyler Glasnow are all on the injured list. Shohei Ohtani? His return to pitching is still quite some time away.
So, right now, it’s only Yoshinobu Yamamoto holding things down by himself, and that’s a dangerous spot to be in. The Dodgers are quite literally one Yamamoto injury away from not having a stable rotation at all. Risky, to say the least.
Expectedly, this imbalance is also showing up in the numbers. The Dodgers’ offense is firing on all cylinders, and they’re ranked No. 1 in batting average at .268. But their pitching?
A far cry from that standard, sitting at No. 22 in team ERA with a 4.16 mark. Now that gap says it all, and it explains why Roberts is so desperate to get Clayton Kershaw back to form, and quickly. Kershaw’s current 4.91 ERA may not be serving the team right.
They don’t just need him back, they need him sharp, now.
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