Dodgers Insider Believes Clayton Kershaw Will Return to LA

Dodgers insider David Vassegh "firmly believes" future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw will be back with the Dodgers in 2023.

Dodgers legend Clayton Kershaw's distant future is clear. At some point in the future, roughly five years after he retires, Kershaw will stand on a stage in Cooperstown, New York, on a summer afternoon and give a speech as he's inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. When his plaque is hung on the wall in the Hall's gallery, it will be a Dodgers hat on his head.

The only two questions remaining are: When will that be, and will the plaque mention Kershaw playing his entire career in Los Angeles?

For the second straight year and the third time overall, Kershaw is heading into free agency, his near future with the only franchise he's ever played for once again uncertain.

Last year, Kershaw rebuffed overtures from the Rangers and overcame career doubt caused by an elbow injury, eventually re-signing with L.A. after the lockout and having a resurgent year for the Dodgers. This offseason, the Rangers figure to be interested again, and the allure of full-time fatherhood to his four young children will undoubtedly make retirement look at least a little tempting.

Dodgers insider David Vassegh, though, said on FoxLA's "Extra Innings" he doesn't think Kersh is going anywhere.

“I firmly believe he’ll be back with the Dodgers next season. I’m not sure how, whether he accepts a qualifying offer or the Dodgers coming to a one-year agreement with him. That’s the way he wants to play the remainder of his career, one-year deals, and I don’t see him pitching for the Texas Rangers. I believe he’ll be back with the Dodgers.”

From your lips to Kershaw's ears, DV. Clayton needs to be a Dodger forever.