Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw threw three scoreless innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City in his first rehab start Wednesday, as the 37-year-old left-hander tries to work his way back from offseason surgeries on his toe and knee.
Kershaw allowed two hits without a walk and struck out two in the game against Tacoma.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner has dealt with a variety of health issues in recent years, and he hasn’t thrown more than 132 innings in a season since 2019. He didn’t pitch until July 25 last year after undergoing shoulder surgery, and he went just 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA in seven starts before he was shut down Aug. 30 with a bone spur in his big toe.
Kershaw, who is eligible to come off the injured list on May 17, has spent all 17 of his big league seasons with the Dodgers. The 10-time All-Star is 212-94 with a 2.50 ERA, and he was the NL MVP in 2014, when he went 21-3 with a 1.77 ERA.
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The Dodgers’ rotation is currently made up of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May and Landon Knack. Along with Kershaw, offseason acquisition and 2023 NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell is on the Injured List with inflammation in his throwing shoulder, while Shohei Ohtani is slowly working toward a return to the mound, as well.
Given Kershaw’s injury history and age, it’s unclear just what he’ll provide to the Dodgers when he does return, or for how long. He is, however, approaching an individual milestone: Kershaw sits at 2,968 career strikeouts, leaving him just 32 short of becoming the 20th pitcher ever to reach 3,000 Ks for his career.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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