All eyes are on Kershaw as he is now three shy of 3,000 strikeouts
by Mark Langill
Clayton Kershaw’s first Major League pitching coach made sure to visit the dentist’s office early Thursday morning near his Ringgold, Georgia home before camping in front of his television to watch his prized pupil chase history in Colorado.
Although it took a few hours for Rick Honeycutt’s numbness inside his mouth to subside from a couple of fillings, the 70-year-old baseball lifer had no problem feeling pride and nostalgia in his heart.
Honeycutt has marveled at the fellow left-hander’s Hall of Fame career evolve after Kershaw was selected in the first round (seventh overall) of the June 2006 First-Year Player Draft out of Highland Park High School in Dallas, Texas.
Kershaw, 37, entered the Dodgers’ series final against the Rockies needing eight strikeouts to become the 20th pitcher in Major League history to record 3,000 career strikeouts.
He registered five strikeouts in six innings while scattering one run on two hits during a 3–1 victory as Los Angeles swept the three-game series. After the team’s weekend trip to Kansas City, Kershaw (4-0) will bring 2,997 strikeouts into his next start on Wednesday at Dodger Stadium against the Chicago White Sox.
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“Who could ever anticipate the numbers he’s been able to produce. I don’t think anyone in their wildest dreams could have expected this,” says Honeycutt, who was the Los Angeles pitching coach from 2006 to 2019.
Honeycutt, a 21-year Major Leaguer, including a Dodger tenure from 1985 to 1987, remains a member of the organization as a special assignment coach. He visits various Minor League affiliates, including this season at Triple-A Oklahoma City, where Honeycutt watched Kershaw’s final appearance during a rehabilitation assignment.
“He’s so humble and gracious. He doesn’t even like to talk about the records,” Honeycutt says. “He’s more focused on the team’s wins than his victories.”
Honeycutt didn’t alter his travel schedule to watch Kershaw. He can walk down memory lane and relive Kershaw’s early years with Los Angeles, from Kershaw’s first Major League camp cameo against the Boston Red Sox in 2008 to facing a demotion to Triple-A early in 2009 when Kershaw struggled with high pitch counts early in the season.
“I’ll never forget the look on his face when he walked off the pitcher’s mound against the Red Sox,” Honeycutt said, recalling a sweeping curveball that struck out Boston left-handed slugger Sean Casey. “He sat down next to me in the dugout. I just patted his leg. He stared straight ahead and said, ‘Man, that was fun.’ That’s one of the keys to his success. He loves to compete.”
According to Honeycutt, one of the early crossroads in Kershaw’s career occurred early in the 2009 season. Kershaw was struggling with high pitch counts, and the front office considered sending him to Triple-A.
“(Manager) Joe Torre told (general manager) Ned Colletti, ‘This is your future. Let us do the teaching.’ ”
Honeycutt credits Kershaw with making the necessary adjustments in his game. His ability to self-evaluate makes him a perpetual work in progress, even in Kershaw’s 18th season, as the longest-tenured pitcher in franchise history.
“Joe Torre and I told Clayton, ‘There’s only so much we can do for you. The rest is up to you,’” Honeycutt recalled.
Honeycutt didn’t bother altering his travel plans as Kershaw inched closer to the milestone. He looks forward to visiting Dodger Stadium in July.
“It will be fun to see Clayton in person again,” Honeycutt says. “I’ll give him a big hug. I can’t wait to call him when he gets to 3,000.”
Wearing a Los Angeles Rams cap after the game — his high school teammate was future Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford — Kershaw smiled when asked what it would mean to get his next three strikeouts at Dodger Stadium.
“Yeah, it would be special,” he admitted.
But Kershaw was quick to credit Roberts for managing his pitch count as he navigates the twilight of his career.
“There are good days, there are bad days,” Kershaw said. “Good pitches and bad pitches. So it’s not as consistent or as perfect as I would want. But at the end of the day, we’re winning games that I’m pitching. So I’m thankful for that, and it’s just the product of being on a great team.”
Dodger manager Dave Roberts looks forward to seeing Kershaw at Dodger Stadium with his friends and family in the stands. Like Honeycutt, Roberts praises Kershaw with making adjustments throughout Thursday’s game and in recent years when Kershaw battled injuries.
“As you get older, you have to read and react,” Roberts said. “I give Clayton a lot of credit, not to be so stubborn in what got him to this point. He’s still finding a way to be good, and he’s doing that.”
Against Kershaw (69 pitches, 41 strikes), the Rockies could only manage Brenton Doyle’s solo home run in the second inning, which gave Colorado a 1–0 lead.
The Dodgers tied the game in the third inning. Miguel Rojas hit a one-out double off Colorado starter Austin Gomber. After Shohei Ohtani walked, the runners advanced on a wild pitch. Mookie Betts hit a sharp grounder to first baseman Michael Toglia, who made a diving stop. Betts reached safely on the RBI infield single when the left-handed Gomber initially broke toward home to back up the catcher and wasn’t able to cover first base after realizing Toglia stopped the ball.
Freddie Freeman’s RBI single off reliever Juan Mejia in the sixth made it 2–1. Ohtani belted his 28th home run of the season in the seventh off Tyler Kinley.
Colorado had the tying run at the plate in the ninth, but left fielder Andy Pages ended the game with a double play after a lineout against reliever Tanner Scott.
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Kershaw three shy of 3,000 strikeouts was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.