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The news on Clayton Kershaw did not seem good on Thursday, with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts saying he did not think the veteran left-hander, sidelined all month by a left big toe injury, would “be viable for a couple of weeks.”
But the three-time National League Cy Young Award winner is not ready to give up on his hopes of pitching in the playoffs if the Dodgers can make a deep October run.
“I’m going to keep trying every day,” Kershaw, 36, said before Thursday night’s series finale against the San Diego Padres in Dodger Stadium. “Maybe it’ll feel better one day. I’m just waiting for that day to happen.”
The Dodgers defeat the San Diego Padres 7-2 to clinch another NL West title, but Freddie Freeman rolls his ankle in another potential cause for concern.
Asked again on Thursday what is ailing Kershaw, Roberts repeated his response from Tuesday, when he said, “It’s the toe … it’s the body.”
Kershaw said the toe remains the primary issue — “That’s the truth,” he said — but acknowledged that compensating for the pain in his push-off foot is putting the rest of his body at risk.
“There’s only like a percentage I can throw without other stuff starting to bother me because I’m throwing differently,” Kershaw said. “Whenever my toe feels better, I’m confident that I’ll be good. But yeah, other stuff pops up when I’m not throwing normally. It’s not a big deal. It’s just there’s a max percentage that I can throw right now.”
Kershaw, who missed the first four months of the season while recovering from November’s shoulder surgery, has completed several bullpen workouts in the past two weeks — one in which he threw about 80 pitches — but he has not advanced to a point where he is ready to face hitters.
“I feel like it’s progressing, it’s just obviously not as far as I hoped or wanted,” Kershaw said. “There are slight improvements like waking up in the morning, the [ability to put] pressure on it, maybe. But it’s just not there yet.”
Roberts said Kershaw, who went 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA in seven starts after being activated in late July, will have to complete several bullpen workouts and face hitters before being considered for the team’s injury-ravaged playoff rotation.
“My arm, I’m keeping good as best I can,” Kershaw said. “I really think when my toe is better, I’ll be ready to pitch. I just need to get as close to 100% so I can throw normally.”
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Miguel Rojas to play through injury
Dodger star Shohei Ohtani, left, consoles teammate Miguel Rojas after the shortstop sustained an adductor muscle injury against the Padres on Wednesday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
An MRI test revealed a tear in Miguel Rojas’ left adductor muscle, but the veteran shortstop expects to be ready for the playoffs after receiving a cortisone injection in the injured area on Thursday.
“I’m going to have to take a couple of days [off] to try to calm it down and be ready for what is really important, which is playing in the playoffs,” Rojas, 35, said. “My target is to play at least one more game before the regular season is over.”
Rojas, who is batting .283 with a .748 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, six homers and 36 RBIs and has played superb defense in 103 games, has been playing with the injury for several weeks, and he aggravated it while running the bases on Wednesday night, exiting the game in the fifth inning.
“Running the bases, making turns,” Rojas said, when asked what movements are most difficult. “When I run straight ahead to first base, it’s not a problem. When I play short and I have to move side to side, it’s not a problem. But when I have to chase a fly ball over my head and I have to kind of turn, that’s when the adductor gets kind of pinched.”
The Dodgers incorporated regular off days in Rojas’ schedule to ease the stress on his legs. With built-in off-days in October, Rojas thinks he will be able to manage his injury.
“You’re never gonna play more than three games in a row, so hopefully my ability to stay on top of it, plus the little injection of medicine, will help me manage it,” Rojas said. “I’m going to give it my all.”
Shohei Ohtani’s energy has been infectious, powering the Dodgers to a win over the Padres and one step away from a pennant.
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Brusdar Graterol out … again
Brusdar Graterol’s injury-marred season took another turn for the worse on Thursday when the hard-throwing right-hander was placed on the injured list because of shoulder inflammation.
He missed the first four months of the season because of a shoulder injury, and when he made his long-awaited 2024 debut on Aug. 6, he suffered a hamstring strain that sidelined him for another month.
Graterol had a 2.45 ERA in seven games and looked sharp in his last two appearances, throwing two hitless innings against Colorado on Sept. 20 and needing five pitches to throw a hitless inning against the Padres on Tuesday night, but his shoulder never felt right.
“He’s been battling it since spring training … and since he’s been back, it’s been kind of touch and go, good, then not good,” Roberts said. “After his last outing, he couldn’t play catch the next day. So we got a scan and put him on the IL. What that looks like for the rest of the season, I don’t know. I think it’s going to be a week-to-week situation.”
Right-hander Ben Casparius was recalled to replace Graterol in the bullpen. Backup catcher Austin Barnes (left big-toe fracture) was also activated, and rookie catcher Hunter Feduccia was optioned. The Dodgers also activated left-handed reliever Anthony Banda (left hand fracture) off the injured list for Thursday night’s game and placed right-hander Brent Honeywell on the IL because of a cracked middle fingernail on his pitching hand.
