Clayton Kershaw closed his legend-making, Hall of Fame-bound career on the perfect note: with a third World Series championship. In his speech to the sold-out crowd at Dodger Stadium gathered after their parade in downtown LA, he said, “Last year, I said I was a Dodger for life. And today, that’s true, and today, I get to say that I’m a champion for life, and that’s never going away.”
In an alternate universe, Kershaw got the last out in Game 7 of this year’s Fall Classic. He was warming up in the bullpen alongside Roki Sasaki, even with the Blue Jays’ tying run on third base. It’s for the best that the Dodgers left Yoshinobu Yamamoto in, but it’s clear that Dave Roberts’ longtime trust in his former ace never wavered.
It wouldn’t be surprising if Kershaw completely falls off the map for five years and only resurfaces when it’s time for him to give his induction speech at Cooperstown, but he’s certainly earned the right to disappear for a little while.
According to Andy McCullough of The Athletic, Andrew Friedman approached Kershaw with an offer to stay close to the team as a member of the front office, but Kershaw declined. “I don’t think I have any full-time jobs in my future,” he said. “Except full-time dad.”
Dodgers offered Clayton Kershaw a front office job after the World Series, but he said no
Even though he didn’t come in to close out Game 7, his last on-field act as a Dodger was getting out of a bases-loaded jam, at Dodger Stadium, in a game LA went on to win in an historic 18-inning affair. He walked off the field to a standing ovation, and that was the last pitch he threw in his MLB career.
Kershaw’s wife Ellen is pregnant with their fifth child, and they maintain a home in the suburbs of Dallas during the offseason that Kershaw seems eager to get back to. Of course, Dodgers fans would’ve loved to see him have some say in the team’s future, but the guy gave the organization 18 years of his life. No one can blame him for wanting to put a little more distance between himself and the game.
If he does resurface before his Induction Day, it’ll probably be because the Dodgers are retiring No. 22. Until then, expect Kershaw to relax and spend time with his family for the foreseeable future.
