The word is simple even though it lands heavy. Retired.
Clayton Kershaw said Thursday that this chapter — his legendary chapter on the mound — is coming to a close once this postseason run is complete. After 18 years in the big leagues, all with the Dodgers, one of the game’s greatest starting pitchers has decided to walk away.
It’s been since 2008 that Kershaw’s presence has run parallel with the existence of the game. The two are tightly intertwined. Much like football had Brady, basketball has — for now — LeBron, baseball had Kershaw.
He was constant. The constant that produced at such a high clip.
That’s why during his press conference Thursday you could see him cut straight to it.
“I’m going to call it,” a choked up Kershaw said. “I am going to retire.”
He called his emotions weird. Maybe, at that moment, they were. Only Kershaw could feel. His three Cy Young Awards, 11 All-Star selections, a stack of ERA titles, a Gold Glove, a World Series, an MVP and a Triple Crown all connect the dots to his greatness. Connect the dots back to him. Maybe not his identity but his imprint. The way he bent the sport to his will, even down to his pitch shapes.
He was, and remains, one of one.
“Kersh was the best pitcher of our generation,” former MLB starter and Kershaw teammate, David Price, a generational pitcher in his own right, told CBS Sports.
“I always marveled at how he never seemed to be behind in the count against us,” added free agent reliever Adam Ottavino.
“I think right out of the gate, the first thing you notice is how great of an individual he is and how down to earth he is,” said left-handed veteran Rich Hill. “He understands all facets of life.”
All three have some connection with Kershaw.
Ottavino competed against the future Hall of Famer in the National League for years, mostly with the Rockies. Price was Kershaw’s teammate in Los Angeles for two seasons. Hill was, too — his run even longer, spanning five seasons that included their 2018 World Series appearance. But Price, Hill, and Ottavino also share something with each other, not with Kershaw: they haven’t told the world that they have officially put away their cleats. Not just yet.
Price isn’t even sure if his agent filed the paperwork to make his retirement official. He hasn’t announced anything publicly, even though he hasn’t pitched since 2022. He’s 40. Ottavino was cut by the Red Sox in spring training, then made three appearances with the Yankees before being released there, too. Maybe he’ll pitch again, maybe not. For now, he’s dabbling in the media space. He’s 39. Hill just played for his 14th team in 2025, tying Edwin Jackson for the most ever. He made two starts with the Royals before being designated for assignment and will soon undergo shoulder surgery. There’s some stuff barking in there, he said, that needs to get cleaned up. Who knows, he said, maybe he’ll come back when he’s 48. He’s currently 45.
That’s what makes Kershaw’s announcement so rare. Baseball players fashion themselves as gladiators, fighting through pain, failure, and the long grind of the minors. It takes a kind of delusional stubbornness to survive all that, to believe you belong in the stadium.
“It is very difficult,” Hill said. “When you know that you have something left in a tank. When you want to go out and continue to compete and play at the highest level, it is something that you can’t just [give up] You’ll never be able to get the juices flowing like you do at a major-league game.”
To officially give up the title of big leaguer is to concede you can’t do it at the highest level anymore — or that you don’t want to. It’s stepping down from the stage with everyone watching. And for many, it feels easier, safer, to just fade into the dark than to lay down the sword.
Yet Kershaw is laying his down. Gracefully. Home has called. His wife, Ellen, and his four children have called.
But his dominance will forever be embedded in the fabric of the sport.
“It was awesome getting to be his teammate and watching the way he worked and interacted with his teammates, coaching staff, and clubhouse staff,” Price said. “He had an amazing career.”
His numbers speak loudly. He never had a losing season in his 18-year career. Kershaw struck out more than 3,000 batters, one of only 20 pitchers to reach that mark. His 157 ERA+ ties Pedro Martínez for the best ever among long-tenured starters.
“Prime Kershaw had the stuff and the command,” said Pirates outfielder Tommy Pham. “Later in his career, like most, he lost his stuff but still had the command and tenacity. He was — or is — the ultimate competitor.”
“Very rarely did his starts ever feel like he wasn’t the one in control of everything,” Ottavino intimated. “Stuff wise, the fastball always played better than the radar gun, and the slider seemed to look like that fastball for a very long time. The curveball was nothing like those other two pitches but somehow complemented them perfectly. His delivery had a weird timing hitch but it never got him out of wack, only the batters.”
Kershaw, at 37, is still in control. He made sure of it. He’s leaving on top, carrying a 3.53 ERA in 20 starts into his final appearance Friday night at Dodger Stadium, fittingly, against the Giants. His announcement was quick because the word “retirement” was heavy.
Or, in Kershaw’s words, weird.