Dodgers place ace Clayton Kershaw on IL with pelvic injury

The Los Angeles Dodgers entered Friday atop the National League West standings at 20-10 overall but shared some concerning news ahead of the evening's home game against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Per Henry Palattella of the official MLB website and Alden Gonzalez of ESPN, Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw won't take the bump on Friday as scheduled. He instead will head to the injured list with a pelvic issue described as "inflammation in his SI joint." Walker Buehler is set to start in Kershaw's place. 

Gonzalez notes that the SI joint "connects the base of the spine to the hip bones." 

In a corresponding roster move, Los Angeles recalled left-hander Garrett Cleavinger to the active roster. Thus far this spring, Cleavinger has posted a 5.40 ERA in two big-league appearances. 

Kershaw, meanwhile, performed like one of the league's best pitchers through the season's first month. Per ESPN stats, the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner shares the MLB lead with four victories on the young campaign, and he possesses a 1.80 ERA with 32 strikeouts notched across 30.0 total innings of work. 

The 34-year-old was prematurely pulled from his season-opening outing against the Minnesota Twins even though he tossed seven perfect innings and had thrown just 80 pitches at the time. Kershaw later defended that call. 

As of early Friday afternoon, it was unclear when Kershaw may return to the Dodgers rotation.