The Los Angeles have had issues with their depth of pitching throughout the season, but now that they are six wins away from winning their second straight World Series, there is little margin for error.
More news: Former GM reveals how LA didn’t draft Clayton Kershaw
One pitcher who struggled in the NLDS but made the NLCS roster is future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw. He earned a spot on the roster based on his stellar performance alone, but general manager Brandon Gomez recently spoke on MLB Network about why the three-time Cy Young Award winner is the right person for the job.
When asked if adding Kershaw to the roster was a difficult decision, Gomez was honest about the legend.
“No, I think Karsh means a lot to this team. What he means to us as a teammate and what he can do on the mound, we felt it was important for him to be part of the group and go out there and we know he’s going to help us win games in a lot of different ways,” Gomez said. “I look forward to a few more series with Karsh as a member of the .”
When Kershaw appeared as a reliever in Game 3 of the NLDS, his expression was far from the sharpest. He pitched two innings, allowing four earned runs on six hits (two of which were home runs), and walking three batters.
President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman made no excuses for the southpaw, but noted several factors that don’t show up in the box score.
“I think it was something. It was a road trip against the Phillies and there was a long period between pitching and it was a different role,” Friedman said. “He never gave that excuse, but it was a very unusual direction from him. When you think of command, you think of Clayton Kershaw.
“So I think it helps that he’s been through that. His mindset has always been that he wants to do whatever he can to help us win. And he embodies that. And I’d bet on him helping us win this (NLCS) series.”
Kershaw did not appear in either of the first two games of the NLCS as LA’s starting pitchers dominated, striking out 17 of 18 innings.
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Photo credit: Kiyomio-Imagn Images
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