(David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
He’s no longer at his peak. Yet, he remains the most consequential piece of the Dodgers’ pitching staff.
As it stands right now, the Dodgers desperately need Clayton Kershaw to continue anchoring their pitching staff. Or else …
It’s not the position the Dodgers expected to be in, not after Julio Urías was a Cy Young Award candidate the last two years, Tony Gonsolin was a first-time All-Star in 2022 and Dustin May was expected back at full health after returning from Tommy John surgery.
Alas, May needs season-ending surgery. Gonsolin has been inconsistent. And Urías had regressed before missing six weeks with a hamstring strain.
If the playoffs started now, Kershaw would be the Game 1 starter of the team’s underperforming pitching staff, which ranks 23rd in the majors in ERA.
The only problem: Kershaw is battling another injury, currently on the injured list (though expected back soon) with shoulder soreness.
This is what makes the rotation a key question over the final 2 ½ months, with the team needing at least one other starter to emerge as a co-ace with the 35-year-old Kershaw (who is 10-4 with a 2.55 ERA), if not supersede him entirely between now and October.
Urías (6-5, 4.76) is the clearest such candidate, finally looking more like his old self in his last start before the break. The team also needs more from Gonsolin (5-3, 3.86), who hasn’t recorded a quality start (six-plus innings and no more than three earned runs) since June 13.
More than almost anything, starting pitching can make or break a postseason run. And while several quality arms could be available at the deadline — from Marcus Stroman to Lucas Giolito and Eduardo Rodriguez — there won’t be any transcendant talents available, meaning the Dodgers will need more than just Kershaw.