The last time Clayton Kershaw took the mound for an afternoon game at Dodger Stadium he was lifted after throwing only 80 pitches in five innings, and with the Los Angeles Dodgers trailing the Arizona Diamondbacks, 3-0.
Dodgers manager Don Mattingly’s decision to remove Kershaw from the game in effort to get runs on the board didn’t sit well with the reigning National League MVP, and resulted in a heated exchange in the dugout.
After Kershaw tossed a complete-game shutout with 13 strikeouts to help the Dodgers clinch a third straight National League West title, Mattingly said he wasn’t completely certain Kershaw would take the mound Sunday for a regular-season finale.
The Dodgers’ manager later said his ace would take the mound one final time, but under a watchful eye. On Friday Mattingly offered more specifics on what to expect when Kershaw next toes the rubber.
“We don’t really have a set pitch limit,” Mattingly said. “There will be a limit that we won’t let him go over. There’s not really a minimum, either. Three to four innings, something like that.” The short outing on Sept. 24 appeared to put a dent in Kershaw’s chances of reaching 300 strikeouts this season.
However, his 13 strikeouts against the Giants put him back on track and within six of reaching the milestone. While Kershaw has downplayed the significance, Mattingly will allow him to pursue it on Sunday — within reason.
“We talked about it. Pitch count and how far he goes is more important than [300 strikeouts] to him,” Mattingly said. “I want him to get it, I’m sure he would like to do it. If it comes within the framework, then we’ll be fine with it.”
Should he reach the mark, Kershaw will become the first pitcher to tally 300 strikeouts in a season since Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling did so in 2002. Working in the left-hander’s favor is the San Diego Padres rank fifth in the Majors in strikeouts as a team.
As for any additional motivation Kershaw may have given his postseason shortcomings and meaningful October baseball less than a week away, Mattingly doesn’t believe much has changed.
“He’s pretty motivated all the time,” he said. “I don’t think anything has changed him. He’s going forward all the time.”
