During Thursday’s Dodgers game vs. the Giants, Los Angeles starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw left the game in the fifth inning after an apparent injury he suffered during warmup pitches.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner walked off the field with a trainer to get examined further.
According to the Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, the ace appeared to tell the team’s trainer “it’s my back,” as they walked off the field.
Through the four full innings Kershaw pitched on Thursday afternoon, he allowed three hits, two runs and one home run, and totaled four strikeouts. He left the game with the Dodgers up 4–2.
There have been no official updates about Kershaw’s injury or how it may impact the star pitcher going forward, with the team just calling it “low back pain.”
This isn’t the first time the 34-year-old has dealt with back issues in his career. In 2014, Kershaw missed 41 days early in the season with a back inflammation issue. Then, in ’16, he missed 74 days due to a disc herniation. In ’17, he dealt with a back strain. Ongoing back problems continued to affect him in ’18 and ’20.
The 34-year-old is in his 15th season with the Dodgers. He earned a starting pitching role in the 2022 All-Star Game for the first time in his career.
Entering Thursday’s game, Kershaw has tallied a 2.66 ERA, allowing 66 hits, 27 runs and six home runs in 81.1 innings pitched so far. He has 84 strikeouts and allowed 14 walks on the season.
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