Kershaw’s Rough Return: Did Age or Injury Shake Dodgers’ Ace in Critical Season Opener?
There’s a certain stillness in that moment, isn’t there? Clayton Kershaw, the ace pitcher whose name is etched deep into Dodgers lore, halted halfway up the dugout steps this past Saturday. He lowered his head, a solitary pause before jogging out onto the mound at Dodger Stadium—a moment heavy with the weight of what’s likely to be the final act of an unforgettable career. Quiet reflection took over, the kind you feel behind your eyes when facing the inevitable twilight of greatness.
Though he insists it wasn’t “emotional,” there was an unmistakable reverence in Kershaw’s words after tossing his first game of the 2025 season in the Dodgers’ high-scoring 11-9 loss to their division rivals, the Angels. “You get older, you start to really absorb these moments differently,” he shared, offering a rare peek at the man who’s battled injuries, time, and expectations all at once. Since last August—when a bone spur sidelined him after a blistering campaign—Kershaw’s return was long awaited, a spark Dodgers desperately needed amid a rotation thinned by injury.
The first pitch—an errant high fastball—was just the opening note of a rollercoaster outing. Three runs and multiple walks in the first inning underscored the long road back from the sidelines. Yet there were flashes of that vintage Kershaw brilliance in the following innings—a couple of runs allowed, sure, but a gritty four-frame effort peppered with two strikeouts, navigating a wild slugfest where the Angels’ catcher Logan O’Hoppe put on a clinic with five RBIs of his own.
“If you ask me, there’s something truly special about stepping back out here, throwing at Dodger Stadium again,” Kershaw reflected. “Obviously, I wanted better results, but the glimpses of what made me me are still there. The command’s rusty—that’s clear—but the heart? That’s never left.”
For a franchise sitting at 29-17 yet stretched thin with three starters on the injured list, his comeback is more than symbolic. The Dodgers’ ace, now 37, still chases the milestones that have defined a career punctuated by three Cy Young Awards and a looming 3,000-strikeout club induction. Yet the toll of countless surgeries, nagging injuries, and setbacks over recent years serves as a sober counterpoint to the records and accolades—his body narrating a saga of resilience that no statistic can capture.
So as fans watched him navigate a turbulent first inning under the gaze of his longtime high school teammate, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, a vivid tableau unfolded. Bases loaded, runs creeping in—but also moments of Dodgers grit. A three-run homer by Andy Pages and steady innings to follow remind us that Kershaw’s story isn’t finished yet.
His velocity surprised manager Dave Roberts, and despite the inconsistency of his command, there’s a whisper of old magic with his slider, curveball, and changeup mix. The journey ahead might be uncertain, but the love for the game that first took hold decades ago burns brightly still.
Here’s to savoring every pitch, every out, every breath of this likely last chapter for one of baseball’s greats. Because, honestly, witnessing a legend like Kershaw step back into the arena is a moment worth pausing for.
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