One day after MLB’s 99-day lockout ended with a new Collective Bargaining Agreement now in place, Dodgers fans received even more good news – GREAT news – on Friday afternoon: Free agent Future Hall of Fame left-hander Clayton Kershaw is returning to the Dodgers on a one-year deal pending a physical.

Although the exact details of the deal have yet to be officially announced, several reports have it as a one-year/$17 million deal, with an additional potential $5 million in performance bonuses.

There is a slight catch, however; something that Dodgers fans will undoubtedly be keeping a very close eye on all season:

As savvy Dodgers fans know, Kershaw will enter the 2022 season – his 15th – with 2,670 career strikeouts, 26 behind Dodgers Hall of Fame right-hander Don Sutton‘s 2,696 for the most in Dodgers history. However, Sutton did so during his 16 seasons in Dodger Blue. Sutton also had a 3.09 ERA during his 16 seasons with the Dodgers, whereas Kershaw will enter the 2022 season with an alien-like career ERA of 2.49.

Prior to Friday’s announcement and during his first press conference of 2022 (via Zoom), Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters that even though he hasn’t been in contact with the soon-to-be (on March 19) 34-year-old Dallas, TX native, “Knowing Clayton, he is preparing for April 7th or 8th. I don’t know if he’s in Arizona right now, I don’t know if he’s in Highland Park (TX), but knowing him, he’s ready to pitch for a ball club.”

That ball club will be the only ball club that Kershaw has ever pitched for and the team that drafted him in the first round in 2006 out of Highland Park High School in University Park, TX…

…the Los Angeles Dodgers!

Play Ball!

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