The Los Angeles Dodgers got some positive news on the Clayton Kershaw front Sunday, but that doesn’t mean he will be ready for Opening Day.
Kershaw threw for the first time in nearly a week Sunday and felt good afterward.
However, manager Dave Roberts acknowledged on Monday that his ace might not have enough time to get healthy enough to pitch for Opening Day.
#Dodgers Dave Roberts said Clayton Kershaw’s progress has been good but acknowledged for the first time there might not be enough time for CK to be ready for Opening Day: “That’s fair.”
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) March 4, 2019
The lefty has been dealing with a nagging injury to his throwing shoulder for over two weeks now. He was shut down indefinitely, which turned out to be just a few days of rest, before testing his shoulder a week ago. That didn’t go well, so he took nearly another week off before going again on Sunday.
Clearly, given Kershaw’s recent history of injury to his throwing shoulder, the Dodgers would be smart to take the long view here. Rushing Kershaw back won’t help the team win the World Series. But ensuring he is ready for the stretch run could.