Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw Comments on Nearing Exclusive Club Following Latest Outing

After his outing Saturday evening, Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw sits 12 strikeouts shy of 3,000, a club that just two other active players are a part of.

“Maybe by September I’ll get there, we’ll see,” Kershaw said. “It’s obviously a very cool thing and it’s starting to get a little more on the forefront of the mind, but who knows how long 12 could take me at this point? It might be until August, so we’ll see.”

With 12 more strikeouts, Kershaw would be the 20th player to reach 3,000 strikeouts, and join Randy Johnson, Steve Carlton and CC Sabathia as the only southpaws to reach this milestone.

Kershaw took another step towards history after a shutdown performance Saturday evening, where he struck out five batters in a seven-inning outing against the San Francisco Giants. Kershaw held the Giants scoreless, allowing just three hits on 81 pitches.

Kershaw has spent his entire career with the Dodgers, making his debut in 2008. In his 18-season career in Los Angeles, he has been named to 10 All-Star games, received three NL Cy Young awards, and won the NL MVP in 2014. He is the Dodgers' all-time leader in strikeouts and will become the first Dodgers pitcher with 3,000 strikeouts for the franchise when he inevitably clears that number.

The left-hander is an asset to a currently depleted Dodgers pitching staff, which has 14 injured pitchers on its 40-man roster. The Dodgers have used the most pitchers, 27, in MLB this season, and their starters have pitched the second-fewest innings in MLB, ahead of only the Miami Marlins.

The Dodgers will hope to get more outings like the one the veteran produced last night as they try to secure the NL West for the fourth year running.

The Dodgers sit one game ahead of the Giants after Saturday's win, and three games ahead of the San Diego Padres, who have lost their last two games to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Dodgers will finish their three-game set in the final game against the Giants on Sunday before a four-game set against the Padres beginning Monday. First pitch for the rubber match against the Giants is at 4:10 p.m. PT.