Clayton Kershaw’s hands rested on his knees, head down, legs slightly bent, back towards home plate, a terrible, all-too-familiar look in this location, at this time of year. Gabriel Moreno, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ teenage catcher, had hit a three-run homer to give the Diamondbacks a five-run lead before Kershaw recorded the first out in Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Saturday night, delivering the crucial punch inside the first 10 minutes.
With their starting rotation in disarray moving into October, the Los Angeles Dodgers have never needed Kershaw more. But they’ve never been more unsure of what he can offer them. Their playoffs debut was ominous: six runs allowed, one out recorded, and probably the worst postseason start in baseball history.
“Disappointing,” Kershaw remarked after losing 11-2. “Embarrassing. You simply feel like you failed everyone. The men, the whole organization, were counting on you to throw well in Game 1. It’s incredibly humiliating. So I just feel like I failed everyone. It’s a difficult way to begin the postseason. Obviously, we still have a shot at this, but it wasn’t how it should’ve begun for me.”
Kershaw pitched admirably with a sore left shoulder in the last two months of the regular season. His fastball was a touch slower, and his outings came after an extra day or two of rest, but he pitched to a 2.23 ERA in eight starts and was limited to approximately five innings at a time to keep his arm fresh for the games that counted most.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts opened Game 1 by saying, “This is as good as he’s felt physically in the last couple months.” Kershaw became the first pitcher in MLB history to allow five hits and five runs before recording an out. Kershaw failed to complete the first inning for the first time in his 454 career starts. Kershaw and his notoriously shaky playoff track record join just three players in postseason history in allowing six runs or more while recording one out or less.
Will Smith, catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, said Kershaw’s stuff “looked like the normal stuff that it’s been all year.” Roberts said that there was nothing physically wrong, which Kershaw agreed with.
“I feel fine,” Kershaw replied when asked whether he is in good enough shape to help the squad go ahead. “I’m fine.” Obviously, I didn’t make enough solid pitches tonight. Nothing to do with health; simply terrible pitching.”
Kershaw’s second pitch, a slightly low 73-mph curveball, was lined 116 mph to center field and bounced off the heel of James Outman’s glove, resulting in a double that should have been called an error. Outman, a rookie, said that the ball sped up on him but stated his “nerves kind of got the best of me.”
Corbin Carroll and Tommy Pham singled back-to-back, Christian Walker doubled, and Moreno, whose status was unknown after being hit in the head by a backswing during Arizona’s last game on Wednesday, blasted a 419-foot home run to left-center field, leaving a stunned Dodger Stadium crowd in stunned silence.
Kershaw was replaced by rookie right-hander Emmet Sheehan three hitters later, after a one-out walk and another double.
“Usually Clayton does a great job of controlling, managing damage,” Roberts went on to say. “And tonight unfortunately we didn’t do that.”
Kershaw’s playoff ERA rose from 4.22 to 4.49 in 19413 innings. It’s two runs more than his stellar regular-season ERA of 2.48 and the highest among the 31 pitchers with more than 100 innings in the playoffs in big league history.
The disparity has been a huge blemish on Kershaw’s reputation, but it is also exacerbated by multiple appearances in which he threw on short rest, was utilized in relief, or was held in longer than usual. This time, it increased dramatically at a time when Kershaw, 35 years old, with about 3,000 innings under his belt and a history of problems, is not totally healthy.
“I don’t think anybody in the baseball world was expecting that,” said Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who was part of an offense that struggled against an aggressive Merrill Kelly. “But the next time Clayton Kershaw takes the mound, we’ll be just as confident.” Hopefully, we’ll be able to get him back on the mound.”
Kershaw’s next scheduled start, according to Roberts, will be Game 4 at Chase Field in Phoenix on Thursday, unless the Dodgers get swept.
Kershaw is the sole remaining member of the Dodgers’ original rotation. Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin had season-ending operations; Julio Urias is on administrative leave after claims of domestic abuse; Noah Syndergaard labored before being sold; and Walker Buehler didn’t recover in time from his second Tommy John surgery.
The Dodgers’ playoff pitching strategy includes a lot of youngsters, a lot of relievers, and a lot of unusualness. However, if they are to make another long run and avoid the early-round disappointments that have plagued them in previous years, Kershaw must rediscover some of his greatness.
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