Dodgers News: Clayton Kershaw's Return 'A Priority' For LA

They want to keep him in LA for his entire career.

The Dodgers have a ton of free agents this offseason — but none feel bigger than the face of their team the last decade and a half, Clayton Kershaw.

Like last year, Kershaw is a free agent, and seems to be mulling retirement or potentially going back to Texas to play for his hometown Rangers. This will most certainly be the case for the remainder of Kershaw's career, however long that may be.

But for now, Andrew Friedman has made it clear that it's a priority to bring Kershaw back next season.

#Dodgers Andrew Friedman said they haven't decided whether they'll give Clayton Kershaw a qualifying offer, but said "it's a priority" to bring Kershaw back next season.

— Juan Toribio (@juanctoribio) November 9, 2022

Kershaw had an incredible year in 2022, as he showed he clearly has a lot more left in the tank. In 22 games, the 34-year-old went 12-3 with a 2.28 ERA, a 0.94 WHIP and 137 strikeouts. He started the All-Star Game for the first time in his career, and took multiple perfect game bids into the 7th inning. He really looked as dominant as ever in 2022, and the Dodgers would love to have him back to fill out their rotation in 2023.

We now for sure know the team wants him back in 2023. It will just be up to Kershaw on whether or not he decides to return for year 16.