By BETH HARRIS
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw will retire at the end of this season, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced Thursday.
The 37-year-old left-hander who got his 3,000th strikeout in July will make his final regular-season start at Dodger Stadium on Friday night against the San Francisco Giants.
The 11-time All-Star and 2014 NL MVP is in his 18th major league season, all with the Dodgers, which ties him with Zack Wheat and Bill Russell for the most years in franchise history. Kershaw won World Series championships in 2020 and 2024.
“On behalf of the Dodgers, I congratulate Clayton on a fabulous career and thank him for the many moments he gave to Dodger fans and baseball fans everywhere, as well as for all of his profound charitable endeavors,” Mark Walter, team owner and chairman, said in a statement. “His is a truly legendary career, one that we know will lead to his induction in the Baseball Hall of Fame.”
Kershaw has a career record of 222-96 and 15 shutouts, which lead active major league players.
His 2.54 ERA is the lowest of any pitcher in the live-ball era since 1920, and his winning percentage tops all pitchers with at least 200 victories since 1900.
Kershaw’s decision was not unexpected. He has struggled with injuries in recent years and began this season on the IL while recovering from offseason surgery. He didn’t pitch until May, but proved to be a stalwart when the rotation was hard-hit by injuries.
In 2024, Kershaw was forced to end his season in August because of a toe injury that limited him to seven starts and just 30 innings with a 2-2 record and a 4.50 ERA, all career lows.
Kershaw is one of three active pitchers with 3,000 strikeouts, along with former teammate Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander. Kershaw could be the last pitcher for a while to reach the milestone — often considered a surefire ticket for Hall of Fame enshrinement. Kershaw would be eligible for Cooperstown in 2031.
He missed the entire postseason, including the Dodgers’ World Series win over the New York Yankees. That spurred him to return this year for what many had speculated would be his final season.
As great as he’s been during the regular season, he’s endured his share of heartache in October. He has a 4.22 ERA in the postseason.
His teammates often cite his work ethic between starts as inspirational, and he is a commanding, if quiet, presence in the clubhouse.
Frequently tabbed as one of the greatest pitchers of his generation, Kershaw built his reputation with a pitching style that relies on deception, movement and velocity changes. He has said he modeled his mechanics after his favorite childhood pitcher, Roger Clemens.
As his velocity diminished in recent years, he found ways to compensate by adapting his approach.
Kershaw is one of the better fielding pitchers and before the National League added a designated hitter, he was known as a decent hitter, too.
He made his big league debut on May 25, 2008.
Kershaw won’t be bored away from the field. He and his wife, Ellen, have four children, with a fifth on the way. His oldest son, Charley, has a locker in the Dodgers clubhouse next to his father. The couple has done humanitarian work in Africa and Los Angeles.
He spends the offseason in his native Dallas, where he and Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford were teammates on their high school football team.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
