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Clayton Kershaw wasn’t expecting manager Dave Roberts to hand him the microphone during the Dodger Stadium portion of Friday’s World Series celebration, because, as the 36-year-old left-hander said afterward, “My role was pretty limited.”
But as the three-time National League Cy Young Award winner and longest-tenured Dodger began to address a rollicking crowd of 42,458, he was surprised how quickly his emotions came to the fore.
“Oh man, I’ve waited for this day for a long time, I’ve wanted to celebrate for a long time,” Kershaw said, his voice raw from screaming during the parade. “I can’t imagine being anywhere else right now, and I can’t imagine doing it with a better group of guys.
The Dodgers celebrated with all of Los Angeles on Friday, parading through the streets of downtown before holding a championship rally at Dodger Stadium.
“I’m at a loss for words,” Kershaw continued, fighting back tears. “I didn’t have anything to do with this championship, but this feels like the best feeling in the world!”
Kershaw was one of several Dodgers players and coaches who won the World Series during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and did not get to celebrate with a parade for the fans.
So even though he did not throw one pitch in October because of toe and knee injuries, both of which Kershaw said will be surgically repaired Wednesday, he cherished every ounce of Friday’s festivities as if he were named most valuable player of the World Series.
“For Doc to call me up and for my teammates to want me to say something meant the world to me, it really did,” Kershaw said. “I knew it’s gonna be a special day, but it was a little bit more emotional than I expected. For sure, it’s a day I’ll definitely never forget.
“You know, baseball is just a game. Everybody says that. But I don’t know, man, you look around and you see how much it means to so many different people … It might be baseball, but it means a lot to a lot of different people. I’m no different.”
Kershaw returned from offseason shoulder surgery in July to make seven starts, only to miss the entire postseason.
Two days after the Dodgers’ thrilling World Series win over the New York Yankees, thousands of fans come out to celebrate and honor the team.
As bittersweet as it was to be reduced to a playoff spectator, it became easier once Kershaw accepted in early October that he wouldn’t be able to play.
“All of September was really hard, just trying to pitch, trying to pitch, and not getting any better,” Kershaw said. “But once I basically threw in the towel and said, â€Hey, this isn’t gonna work,’ I was able to sit back and try to enjoy it. It doesn’t mean I didn’t want to be out there, but knowing I couldn’t made it a little easier to enjoy.”
There will be a lot more sitting — and not as much enjoyment — in Kershaw’s immediate future.
Kershaw revealed on Friday that in addition to his toe injury, he has a torn meniscus in his left knee that will be surgically repaired with his toe.
“It’s gonna be a two-for-one special,” Kershaw joked. “My knee was bugging me, so I was like, â€Let’s get an MRI just to check,’ and sure enough, I need it fixed, so just add it to the list. But that one should be pretty quick. The foot is hard because you can’t walk on it, so I’ll be on crutches for a little bit.”
Kershaw, who announced during the playoffs that he will return to the Dodgers next season, said the damage in his left foot was more extensive than the bone spur that previously was reported.
“I think I ruptured my plantar plate. I think I got a bone spur. I think I got some arthritis. I don’t really know. I gotta ask a few questions,” Kershaw said. “There’s a lot of stuff that needs to get fixed. … but I’ll be back somehow.”
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Daniel Hudson’s farewell
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Blake Treinen, who threw a season-high 42 pitches in 21/3 scoreless innings of the Series-clinching win in Yankee Stadium, ceded most of his stage time to Daniel Hudson, the 36-year-old reliever who announced his retirement after Wednesday’s game.
“Our true leader in the bullpen is Daniel Hudson — I kind of want him to come up here,” Treinen said before handing the microphone to Hudson. “C’mon, G.O.A.T. Here’s Daniel Hudson, guys. We’re not here without him!”
Said Hudson: “I just want to say, I came back for this moment right here. Everybody on this stage is a world champion. Everybody in this stadium is a world champion. Everybody who bleeds Dodger blue is a world champion. Congratulations L.A.! I love you guys!”
Hudson’s 15-year career was marked by two early Tommy John surgeries, two late knee surgeries and a turn as closer for the World Series-winning Washington Nationals in 2019.
Days after the death of Dodgers great Fernando Valenzuela, a petition is calling for a statue of the Mexican left-handed pitcher to be erected at Dodger Stadium.
His promising 2022 season with the Dodgers ended in June because of a torn ligament in his left knee. He spent a year recovering from surgery, only to sprain a ligament in his right knee three appearances into his return, ending his 2023 season in July. But Hudson stayed healthy for an entire season for the first time since 2019, going 6-2 with a 3.00 earned-run average and 10 saves in 65 games.
After giving up one earned run and four hits in 42/3 innings of five games in the first two playoff rounds, Hudson gave up a grand slam to Anthony Volpe in an 11-4 Game 4 loss to the New York Yankees. But the sour taste of his final game quickly was erased by the World Series trophy he clutched Wednesday night.
“This is the only reason I came back, for this feeling right here, for these guys in this clubhouse,” Hudson said during the postgame celebration. “I wanted to go out on top, and that’s what’s happening.”
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Teoscar Hernández hoping to return
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Teoscar Hernández is expected to be a hot commodity on the free-agent market after signing a one-year, $23.5-million deal with the Dodgers last winter and hitting .272 with 33 homers and 99 RBIs in the regular season and .250 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 16 postseason games.
But the outfielder, who is expected to command a deal of at least four years and $80 million, made it clear Friday that he wants to remain in Los Angeles.
“My hopes are really high,” Hernández said. “Like I’ve said before, the Dodgers are the priority, obviously. I’m going to do everything in my power to come back.”
How quickly does Hernández hope a deal comes together?
“Hopefully tomorrow,” he said. “I want to be here.”
