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The Los Angeles Dodgers have had some harsh injury luck this season but reinforcement is on the way.
After hitting the injured list last August due to pain in his left big toe, Clayton Kershaw is set to return to the mound for the first time this season on Saturday to face the Los Angeles Angels.
The return comes at a critical time for the Dodgers, which have more than a dozen arms on the injured list, including frontline starters Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Roki Sasaki. Kershaw has looked sharp in his rehab starts leading up to this debut, but at 37 years old and in his 18th major-league season, the southpaw has been considering how and when he would ultimately hang up his cleats.
Speaking about his upcoming season debut with David Vassegh of 570 LA Sports, Kershaw opened up about why he has fought so hard to keep pitching at this point in his career and he detailed when he might ultimately decide to leave the game.
"I think not letting an injury be the reason I stop, I think that's probably the main thing," behind his decision to re-sign with the Dodgers for another season, Kershaw told the station. "I don't want (my decision to retire) to be because I didn't rehab an injury well."
But Kershaw added that if he returns to the mound and is unable to contribute effectively for the team, he might change his mind on continuing his career.
"Look, if I get out there and get shelled and I'm not any good anymore and just the time is the time, then that's one thing," he admitted. "If another hitter gets the best of me, that's one thing. But I'm not going to let myself do it to myself."
Kershaw was hit for a 4.50 ERA and a negative-0.3 WAR in his seven starts last season, so it seems possible he could retake the mound and feel opposing hitters are indeed getting the best of him. And, if that's the case, he might opt to leave the game as one of the greatest left-handed pitchers in baseball history shortly after.
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