Clayton Kershaw Agrees to New Contract With Los Angeles Dodgers, Pending Physical

Clayton Kershaw hasn't completed a physical to lock in his new contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the future Hall of Fame pitcher still took the field in Arizona on Tuesday.

Feb 18, 2023; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) during a spring training workout at Camelback Ranch. / Allan Henry-Imagn Images

As expected, the Los Angeles Dodgers appear to be bringing their longtime ace back for another go-round.

Clayton Kershaw was spotted at Camelback Ranch on Tuesday, playing catch and participating in the team's first workouts of spring training camp. According to the Los Angeles Times' Jack Harris, though, Kershaw's re-signing is not yet official since he still needs to compete a physical.

The soon-to-be 37-year-old southpaw underwent toe and knee surgeries in the fall, and he is 15 months removed from shoulder surgery.

Kershaw declined his $10 million player option for the 2025 season back in November, making him a free agent for the fourth offseason in a row. But since there was such a strong expectation across the league that Kershaw would be a Dodger for life, he wasn't connected to many other teams over the course of the winter.

Clayton Kershaw’s re-signing isn’t official yet, as he still has to complete a physical, per source

But he is here and playing catch today https://t.co/7DxJ0gBcam

— Jack Harris (@ByJackHarris) February 11, 2025

The 2024 season was a rough one for Kershaw, who posted career lows across the board. In just seven starts, he went 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA, 1.500 WHIP, 7.2 strikeouts per nine innings and a -0.3 WAR. Most of that damage was dealt in his final two appearances of the season in August, before which he was riding high with a 2.63 ERA, 1.250 WHIP and 0.3 WAR.

Kershaw was not able to take the mound in the playoffs, but he still claimed his second career World Series ring after the Dodgers bested the New York Yankees in five games.

For his career, Kershaw is 212-94 with a 2.50 ERA, 1.010 WHIP and a 76.5 WAR. He currently has 2,968 strikeouts, leaving him just 32 shy of becoming the 20th player ever to reach 3,000.

It isn't as if Kershaw's prime is that far in his rear-view mirror, considering he made the All-Star Game in both 2022 and 2023. Between those two seasons, Kershaw went 25-8 with a 2.37 ERA, 1.004 WHIP, 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings and a 7.3 WAR in 46 starts.

The 10-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young won't have to carry a heavy load on his shoulders in 2025 either, based on all the moves the Dodgers have made elsewhere on the pitching staff.

Cy Young winner Blake Snell and burgeoning Japanese ace Roki Sasaki were brought in to replace Walker Buehler and Jack Flaherty, while Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin and Shohei Ohtani are all poised to return from injury. Even with Emmet Sheehan, Gavin Stone and River Ryan still sidelined, Kershaw will be one of eight starters the Dodgers have to work with once Ohtani is cleared.

Kershaw has made $298.7 million over the course of his big league career, so this new deal will make him the seventh player in MLB history to clear $300 million in on-field earnings.

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