One Stat Sums Up Dodgers Pitcher Clayton Kershaw's Dominance of the Giants

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jul 26, 2024

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Clayton Kershaw returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday making his long-awaited season debut after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. He looked like vintage Kershaw.

The lefty limited the Giants to just two runs in a four-inning, 72-pitch outing that saw him scatter six hits and walk two batters. He also struck out six, which added to his dominance of the San Francisco Giants.

Entering the game, he had 402 career strikeouts against the Giants. According to OptaSTATS, he's the only pitcher who made his MLB debut in the divisional era to have 400-plus K's against a single team.

Clayton Kershaw became the only pitcher to play for the Dodgers in 17 seasons and says he'll never take it for granted:

"It makes me feel a little old, but I don't take it for granted what this franchise means to a lot of people in Los Angeles and all over the world." pic.twitter.com/wHo94GZE2i

— Doug McKain (@DMAC_LA) July 26, 2024

Grateful is the word to describe how he felt after the game.

"To be able to get back out there at Dodger Stadium is something I've thought about for a long time," Kershaw told reporters. "It meant a lot. It meant a lot. Ellen and the kids were here too. They were so excited. There's a lot of people in here that spent a lot of time with me to help me get back, and people back home as well to help.

"This was really cool, that a lot of people cared so much to help me. And for me personally to go back out and pitch here at Dodger Stadium definitely -- not that I ever did before, but I'm not going to take that for granted again."

If he feels good and recovers well, then manager Dave Roberts won't hesitate to push him a little further in his next start.

“I thought we pushed him enough to get ready for his next one,” Roberts said of Kershaw’s performance. “We got a nice foundation.”