“I’m a Dodger,” Kershaw told reporters at Camelback Ranch. “Getting to be here for my whole career – however long that is – is definitely a goal. Thankful that I get to continue this journey.”
Clayton Kershaw officially returned to the Dodgers on Thursday, as his one-year, $7.5 million contract was finalized. But coming off of November surgeries on both his left foot and left knee, he told reporters at Camelback Ranch that he’ll likely go on the 60-day injured list at some point, but would likely be ready some time soon after he was eligible (mid-May).
The knee surgery was for a torn meniscus. But it was the foot surgery — Alden González at ESPN described the procedure “to address a bone spur and a ruptured plantar plate in his left foot” — that was the toughest for Kershaw to recover from.
“I was on crutches for four weeks, boot for four weeks. I’m like on week 14 now, so about five or six weeks of walking, and learning how to walk,” Kershaw told reporters Thursday, per SportsNet LA. “I ran here [at Camelback Ranch] for the first time. It’s just a lot of small steps. But throwing feels good, so that’s good.”
Clayton Kershaw on how he’s feeling after surgery:
“The foot surgery has been hard. Walking has been hard, but finally started to turn the corner a few weeks ago. It hasn’t felt this way in a while.”
Catch the whole interview on Spectrum SportsNet: https://t.co/1YSCUrBd8P pic.twitter.com/aafQh7HxGq
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) February 14, 2025
While Kershaw is no fan of rehabbing, he also felt there was more left in the tank, which was what he said last October when he announced his plans to return for 2025. Despite the pain in his foot at the time, his shoulder felt strong after surgery on his shoulder the previous November.
From Fabian Ardaya at the Athletic on Thursday:
“I don’t want (rehab) to be the reason that I stop playing,” Kershaw said. “I don’t want to be, ‘I just can’t do it hurt,’ you know? Hopefully, I can walk out on my own terms, whenever that is, but it just didn’t kind of feel like it was the right time, even though we won. Being on the shelf for that wasn’t the way that I had scripted it out.”
Though the previous few offseasons included dalliances with his hometown Rangers, Kershaw during the championship parade in November was very emotional in front of the Dodger Stadium crowd, and proclaimed he was a “Dodger for life,” a sentiment he reiterated on Thursday.
From Bill Plunkett at the Orange County Register:
“I’m a Dodger,” Kershaw said Thursday at his usual locker in the clubhouse at Camelback Ranch. “I’m so thankful for this organization. I don’t think I put enough merit on it at times, at what it means to be able to be in one organization for your entire career. You look at people throughout all of sports that have been able to do that, and it is special. It is. I don’t want to lose sight of that. Getting to be here for my whole career – however long that is – is definitely a goal. Thankful that I get to continue this journey.”
Kershaw’s teammates are thankful as well, including Blake Snell, who requested to have his locker next to Kershaw’s in the clubhouse.
“You see Kershaw out there, that was crazy to me,” Snell said on MLB Network on Wednesday, after throwing a bullpen session at Camelback Ranch in front of Kershaw earlier in the day. “That’s like the coolest thing I’ve done in my career is pitch in front of him. I can’t wait to see how the season goes.”
“When you say Dodgers, the first name that comes to mind is Clayton Kershaw,” outfielder Teoscar Hernandez told Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “He’s the man here. He’ll always be the man.”
“That’s what he means to this clubhouse, this organization,” manager Dave Roberts said, per David Brandt of Associated Press. “Clayton being around has been uplifting and positive, for him and the other players.”