Clayton Kershaw returning to Los Angeles Dodgers on 1-year deal, source says

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According to a source, the Dodgers and the future Hall of Fame pitcher are in agreement on a one-year contract, keeping him with the only organization he has ever known.

Financial terms were not immediately known.

A three-time Cy Young Award winner and eight-time All-Star, the Dodgers' ace has 185 wins in 14 seasons. The 2021 season was especially difficult, as he had to miss most of the second half and the playoffs because of a sore elbow and forearm.

The Dodgers are cautiously optimistic that Kershaw will be at full health, but will know more once he undergoes a physical examination.

Walker Buehler and Julio Urias are also in the rotation, so if healthy, Kershaw is near the top. The rest of the staff are made up of Tony Gonsolin, David Price and Andrew Heaney, who were signed to a one-year deal in November.

In the 2010s, he averaged 16 wins and 200innings while posting a 2.31 earned run average and recording four times as many strikeouts as walks. His back injuries limited him and eventually lowered his velocity into the 90s. Some of the lowest ERAs in the sport are often attributed to Kershaw.

During the 2020 season, Kershaw regained some of his lost velocity, posted a 2.16 ERA in 10 starts, and won an elusive World Series championship.

He had trouble with his left forearm and elbow in July of last year, after he had posted a 3.39 ERA through his first 18 starts. He completed four starts after returning in the middle of September. On the first day of October, he walked off the Dodger Stadium mound with a recurrence of the same issue and didn't pitch again.

After the World Series, the Dodgers surprisingly decided not to tender an $18.4 million qualifying offer to Kershaw, stating that they still wanted to bring him back but didn't want to pressure him into making a decision quicker than he wanted to.

The Athletic reported that the Dodgers' ace pitcher was re-signing.