by Cary Osborne
Clayton Kershaw may have thrown his last Major League pitch, but not his last competitive pitch.
The recently retired Major Leaguer and Dodger legend will pitch for Team USA in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
“I learned a long time ago, you just want to be a part of great things,” Kershaw told MLB Network on Thursday. “And this team seems like a really fun, awesome group.”
Kershaw said he received an inquiry from Team USA manager Mark DeRosa asking if he would be interested in pitching. Kershaw said he began throwing 10 or 12 days ago and realized he was ready to give it a go.
“It doesn’t feel terrible,” he said. “So I think I’ll be OK.”
Kershaw, whose last pitch in the big leagues was to close out the 12th inning in Game 3 of the 2025 World Series, will be pitching in the World Baseball Classic for the first time. He was announced for the Team USA roster for the 2023 WBC but didn’t end up suiting up.
When it was announced that he wouldn’t be playing in 2023, Kershaw said, “I really wanted to do it. I really wanted to be a part of that group. Probably my last chance to get to do it.”
Not the case now.
Kershaw won a silver medal with the 2005 18U National Team at the COPABE “AAA” Pan American Championships in Mexico. It was the last time he wore USA on the front of his baseball jersey.
Twenty-one years later, the 37-year-old will be doing it again.
He will join his Dodger batterymate Will Smith on Team USA. Smith is the only other Dodger who has been announced to play for Team USA in the WBC. Dodger third base coach Dino Ebel is on the coaching staff.
Kershaw will be part of a pitching staff that includes 2025 American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal and National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes.
Shohei Ohtani was previously announced as a member of the 2026 Japan WBC team.
The 2026 World Baseball Classic begins March 5.
Clayton Kershaw has agreed to pitch for Team USA in the 2026 World Baseball Classic was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.