Dodgers hope Kershaw will be back soon
All-Star threw for 10 minutes on Saturday
LOS ANGELES — Clayton Kershaw played catch for the second day in a row Saturday, giving the Los Angeles Dodgers another positive sign that he is closer to pitching again than they originally speculated.
The 10-minute session prior to the Dodgers’ game Saturday against San Francisco came after Manager Dave Roberts said Kershaw’s activities would depend upon how he felt after Friday night’s throwing session. How many days in a row will Kershaw be allowed to pick up a baseball?
“That’s in the hands of the medical staff,” Roberts said. “He said he felt good today, and they gave him the green light to go play catch.”
Kershaw was forced by lower back stiffness to end his most recent start after two innings July 23 against Atlanta. The Dodgers originally put a fourto-six week time frame on Kershaw’s return, but allowed him to resume throwing Friday after he reported feeling no negative symptoms.
“He’ll continue to ramp up, how aggressively I think that’s going to be up to the medical staff,” Roberts said. “They have keen eyes on him, so we’ll see.”
The Dodgers have yet to decide whether their ace who was 15-2 with a baseballbest 2.04 ERA will travel with the team on their road trip next week.
FOREVER FAMOUS: There may be no crying in baseball, but likely there will be a tear or two shed during the speeches on induction day at the Hall of Fame today.
Star players Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan Rodriguez, former Commissioner Bud Selig and longtime executive John Schuerholz take their places in the shrine at Cooperstown, N.Y.
The forecast calls for sunny skies for the thousands of fans who will gather on a giant field to watch the ceremonies.
HOF AWARDS: Claire Smith’s baseball career came full circle on Saturday at Doubleday Field when she accepted the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.
“Like a pebble in a pond, the honor … sent out the most beautiful ripples, which are now washing up on the shores of Lake Otsego,” Smith said. “And they magically carried my family and me to the most memorable moment of my career.”
Rachel Robinson, the widow of Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson, was honored with the John J. “Buck” O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award.
“I’m honored to receive the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award,” Robinson said. “Buck O’Neil was a staunch champion of baseball and worked to promote inclusiveness within the sport, so I’m truly gratified to be associated with your recognition of Buck in this way.”
The late Bill King was honored with the Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in broadcasting. It was accepted by his stepdaughter, Kathleen Lowenthal.
TRADE: Howie Kendrick is excited for the chance to play for a World Series contender — even if he has to bat toward the bottom of the batting order.
Kendrick was traded from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Washington Nationals late Friday for minor league pitcher McKenzie Mills. The Phillies will send $1.59 million to cover most of the approximately $1.78 million Kendrick is due the rest of this season, and Philadelphia will remain responsible for Kendrick’s $5 million in deferred salary.