Back on February 10, LA Times Dodgers beat writer Jorge Castillo posted a link on Twitter to an article he had written (subscription required) detailing a one-on-one interview he had with Dodgers ace and future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw.

As with many ‘subscription required‘ online media outlets, not everyone subscribes to them. As a result, those on social media who do not, rely on posts from others to get a recap on what was written by those ‘subscription required‘ authors. And like that game we used to play as kids where one kid whispers in the ear of another, who whispers in the ear of another, and so on, the final message is never the same as the original one.

Unfortunately, this is what happened with Castillo’s LA Times piece, which led to rumors and speculation about Kershaw’s future with the Dodgers and the game itself. The cause of those rumors and speculation apparently came from this (confirmed) quote from Kershaw when asked if he wanted a contract extension:

“I don’t know. Honestly, I wish I had an answer. I love being with the Dodgers. Love it. So thankful that I’ve gotten to be there, and I would never want that to change. I’ve always loved being there. Playing with one team your whole career is very cool, I think. But legacy’s not important to me on the baseball field. I don’t worry about that.”

That simple, honest answer caused Twitter to explode in a way that even Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) would appreciate.

Within minutes, Twitter had Kershaw retiring, signing with the Texas Rangers so he could play near his home in Dallas, and even (somehow) had him upset with the Dodgers and with Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman. (Where did that come from?).

But after nearly two weeks of completely unsubstantiated rumors and speculation, the Dodgers ace finally cleared the air on Sunday, when he was asked about his future with the Dodgers during his first Zoom media conference of the Spring. Here is Kershaw’s answer – verbatim – in its entirety:

“I thought Jorge did a great job with that article. I think the ‘I Don’t know’ part was not about playing. As far as I’m concerned, I’m continuing to play and feel great doing it.

“I think what I meant was just like I’m on a year-to-year basis. I want to re-evaluate at the end of every year and see how we’re doing; as a family, myself personally, where we are as a team, and then just make a decision from there.

“I have no intentions of hanging ’em up. You know, I’m only 32, Dave [Vassegh]. I feel like I got a few more years left in the tank.

“If you ask me right now, I really still love playing. I feel healthy right now, I feel like the ball’s coming out good.

“I’m excited for this year and that’s kind of really all I meant was I’m focused on this year and trying to win a World Series, and then after this year, we’ll figure things out.”

A little later in Sunday’s media conference, Kershaw removed all doubt – for those who may still have any – when he added this:

“I love being here. I love the Dodgers. I love everything about this organization.

“I just feel really fortunate that I’ve gotten to have as many opportunities as I have to win the World Series and now that we finally won one, you don’t take that for granted.

“I have really enjoyed my time here and will continue to do so.”

No rumors or speculation here.

Play Ball!

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