LOS ANGELES-- Clayton Kershaw made his season debut after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. He looked tremendous as the Dodgers defeated the Giants 6-4 on Thursday afternoon at Dodger Stadium.
The newest member of the Dodgers, Nick Ahmed, hit the go-ahead home run in the bottom of the eighth against the team that released him this season. Shohei Ohtani added some insurance runs, going back-to-back for his 31st of the season.
Nick Ahmed and Shohei Ohtani go back-to-back! pic.twitter.com/0EnFNucdk6
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 25, 2024
It was Kershaw day as the 10-time All-Star made his first appearance of the season. He pitched four strong innings, allowing six hits and two runs with six strikeouts on 72 pitches.
Kershaw, 36, is entering his 17th season with the Dodgers after signing a one-year deal this past offseason with a player option for 2025.
Six strikeouts for 22. pic.twitter.com/bAAnIjlqt9
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 25, 2024
In the third inning, the Dodgers got into trouble by allowing two runs with no outs. However, Kershaw then stepped up and struck out three Giants consecutively. His slider and curveball were quite effective, with Kershaw achieving four of his six strikeouts with sliders at around 87 mph. The remaining two strikeouts came from 72 mph curveballs, which really threw the batters off balance during his season debut.
Austin Barnes has been the go-to guy whenever Kershaw is on the mound. On Thursday, Barnes had two crucial hits and extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
"He's obviously one of the best pitchers of this generation," Barnes said after the game. "I thought he was the same Kersh that I've always seen. Just with his ability to move pitches around and keep hitter off-balanced."
Tyler Fitzgerald kept up his strong performance by hitting an RBI triple in the third inning. It was supposed to be a double, but Hernandez mishandled the ball in the outfield. Fitzgerald accumulated six hits and two home runs during the four-game series at Dodger Stadium.
Heliot Ramos safely reached first on an infield hit, driving in Fitzgerald for the Giants' second run.
The Giants tried to snatch the game from the Dodgers in the eighth inning, tying the score with a single by Soler and a double by Conforto, as they headed into the ninth inning.
Logan Webb started for San Francisco and pitched for five innings. He allowed four runs, three walks, and achieved four strikeouts on 89 pitches. This marked his 23rd game of the season, and today's performance resulted in a no-decision. So far this season, his record is 7-8 with a 3.72 ERA.
It was a sold-out crowd on Thursday afternoon, with 52,291 fans showing up to support Kershaw.
"It meant a lot," Kershaw talks about returning to the mound. "From the first time having surgery to the rehab process, to be able to get back out there at Dodger Stadium is something I thought about for a long time."
Today, history was made as Kershaw became the first pitcher in Dodgers franchise history to pitch for the organization for 17 years. Kershaw discussed how he felt being out there, as it was his first time in almost nine months.
"There is some stuff I can get better at," Kershaw said. "I felt like the breaking balls were good."
The support Kershaw received from his teammates was great, especially since it was his first time out there with Shohei Ohtani. Dave Roberts thought the arm speed from Kershaw was terrific as it showed on the movement of his pitches.
"I expected the swing and miss," Roberts said postgame. "I just didn't know if the stuff, the hand speed and the arm speed was going to hold, and it did."
Roberts mentioned that he pulled Kershaw after four innings because he saw enough and wanted to get him ready for his next start.
The Dodgers wrapped up the home stand with a 6-1 record and are now gearing up to face the Astros in Houston this weekend. Gavin Stone (9-3, 3.19 ERA) will be the starting pitcher for the Dodgers, while Framber Alvarez (8-5, 3.63 ERA) will take the mound for the Astros. The game is scheduled for Friday at 8 ET/5 PT and can be watched on Apple TV.