The ‘legend’ Clayton Kershaw is legendary again for Dodgers

Even now Clayton Kershaw.

After all these years, Clayton Kershaw.

When the dodgers are in shock and royal and lose their grip on a long hot summer, who is the only player who can stop in the fall and calm the nerves and, oh yes, kick San Diego Padre?

However, again, again, Clayton Kershaw.

He is 37 years old with a body beaten with 18 seasons and a quick ball at the speed of a Zamboni and yet he was Friday evening, carrying a whole dodger nation worried on his tired shoulders in the opening of a series of three games against the arrogant rivals which had just stolen first place.

Final score: Dodgers 3, Padres 2

Final: Six rounds, two strokes, one point.

Final verdict: it is always all that.

“We had the right guy on the mound tonight, I think we all know it,” said manager Dave Roberts, smiling for what seemed to be the first time in a week. “What he did for us tonight, not only the competition, but the stuff … We were spending six sleeves huge, preparing us for the rest of the series … Clayton set the tone … big, big outing by him.”

It was an explosion of the past, only this happens in the present, Kershaw behaving like the second best starter of the staff, improving his record at 7-2 while reducing his ERA to 3.01 and, as crazy as it raised in the past, making an early argument for inclusion in the rotation of the playoffs.

“It was a good night,” said Kershaw.

Discreet as usual. For all this game meant, it was a great evening.

Since July 4, the Dodgers were worse than even the Colorado Rockies, with a 12-21 file while losing 10 games in the ranking against the Padres in 40 days, making first place barely two days ago and playing the paadres six times in the next two weeks.

They desperately needed someone to stop bleeding. And before the match, Roberts said Kershaw was “the perfect guy” to do so.

Perfect prediction. Almost perfect performance.

There was Kershaw, turning and leader and surfing the ball in front of the batdles bats with apparent ease, his only error a suspended curve that Ramón Laureano struck 400 feet.

There was Kershaw, who skillfully made mound games, clearly pleading for each calling call, proudly tracking the mound in a canoe filled with hugs and high-fives.

And there was Kershaw, after his enclosure deposited in danger and barely survived, admitting that this game perhaps meant a little more.

“When you play every day, things can be a spiral fairly quickly,” he said. “So maybe get home, have a discount day to reset and play good games … You just need to start. I hope it was all evening for us.”

Before the match, Roberts recognized that the dodgers play harder, and with more emergency, when Kershaw Tangue.

“He had a way to raise the concentration and the game of people,” said Roberts.

The Dodgers launcher, Clayton Kershaw, turns to return to the canoe after the Dodgers finished a double game against the paadres during the sixth round on Friday.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Indeed, a team that had apparently forgotten to do the little things did each little thing, big defensive games in the corners of Alex Freeland and Freddie Freeman in the eighth round of Blake Treinen who encouraged Manny Machado to attach two runners with a popout.

This is a team that follows Kershaw in a dedicated way … when they are not seated and do not admire it.

“It is built for these great moments,” said Teoscar Hernández, whose seventh Homer round has finally turned out to be the difference. “It’s a legend.”

Kershaw was at his best when the best of dodgers was necessary, and in doing so, he brought mental health to the National League to the West and the old Hardball to a series that had become cheap and inconvenience.

During these seven previous meetings of these two teams this season, the Padres Fernando Tatis Jr. was hit three times, Shohei Ohtani was struck twice, and the director of Roberts and Padres, Mike Shildt, was engaged in a brief shoving and cry match.

The scene was ready for more bad blood, but Kershaw, who entered with a career record 23-11 and 2.19 MPM against the paadres, quickly ended this. He withdrew the paadres on a first round of three speakers and effectively dominated them from there.

“It’s a match in August, of course, it’s not so huge,” said Kershaw. “But the way we went was like a big match for us and, recognizing that we got a victory.”

The only possible controversy emerged when Kershaw was withdrawn from the match after only 76 throws, surprising the fans who did not have time to give him the right ovation while leaving the game in the trembling hands of the enclosure of the lifts.

Get used to it. Dodgers will intelligently protect the Kershaw from mid-season in the hope of maximizing the October Kershaw.

“I just think we have to take care of him,” said Roberts. “For Clayton to give us six solid baseball rounds to one point, he did his job, there was no reason to push him more.”

Before the match, Roberts was asked if his team in difficulty had a meeting reserved for players. He said no, the transparent results of next week would be the equivalent of any meeting.

“I don’t like being embarrassed, I don’t think our players do it, so this series I expect high intensity and high performance,” said Roberts. “I think that in itself, the calendar next week will be enough instead of a meeting.”

In an opening match that attracted the two teams in the first place, the first results were clear.

High intensity? Check.

High performance? Check.

Clayton Kershaw? Always.