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General manager Brandon Gomes of the Los Angeles Dodgers provided the latest update on veteran southpaw Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw declined his $10 million player option with the Dodgers earlier this winter and became a free agent.
Despite battling injuries throughout the 2024 season and missing the postseason, Kershaw, 36, is widely expected to return to the Dodgers for the 2025 season.
“He’s continuing to heal and recover from the procedures he underwent,” Gomes said at the Winter Meetings. “Our hope and expectation is that Clayton will be back next year. Whenever he’s ready, if we have the opportunity to bring him back, we will do so.”
The future Hall of Famer expressed his desire to retire as a Dodger at the end of the season, stating that he is a “Dodger for life.”
“I just assumed everyone knew I was coming back. I’m going to be a Dodger,” Kershaw said during the playoffs after announcing he would play another season without specifying the team.
It is anticipated that Kershaw will sign a new contract with the Dodgers during this offseason, possibly a two-year deal with a player option for the second season. The three-time Cy Young winner underwent two surgeries in November to address his toe and repair the meniscus in his left knee.
Kershaw’s last appearance in the 2024 season was at Chase Field on Aug. 30, where he left the game after one-plus inning due to a recurring toe injury. Although he did not compete in the postseason, his presence inspired Walker Buehler’s heroics in the ninth inning.
“For me, honestly, the first thing I said was ‘What would 22 do?” Buehler recalled telling Mookie Betts during an episode of Betts’ On Base podcast. “Twenty-two would be out there, hurt and all, so I guess I had to do it.”
Kershaw is a beloved figure in the Dodgers organization, and fans are eagerly awaiting confirmation of his return to the team next season.
Photo Credit: Jonathan Hui-USA TODAY Sports
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