Kershaw won’t pitch in WBC after all

Machado to opt out of deal with Padres

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw says he won’t be pitching for the United States at the World Baseball Classic and called the situation “super disappointing.”

“Probably my last chance to get to do it, so I really wanted to do it, but it just didn’t work out for a number of reasons,” Kershaw told reporters Friday from the Dodgers’ spring training camp. “Disappointing, but that’s OK. I’ll be ready for the season.”

The three-time Cy Young Award winner didn’t specify the reasons that would prevent him from participating, though the Los Angeles Times reported the pitcher failed to secure an insurance policy to protect the Dodgers in case of injury. His back-injury history was a significant factor.

“I tried to work it out on my own, tried to work it out with MLB, union, the team,” Kershaw said. “Everybody worked hard to try to make it work. Just wasn’t able to.”

Kershaw, who turns 35 on March 19, signed a $20 million, one-year contract to return to the Dodgers this season. He went 12-3 with 2.28 ERA in 22 starts and had two stints on the injured list last season.

“We would have loved to have this future Hall of Famer on the mound for us,” U.S. general manager Tony Reagins said in a statement. “We now have to pivot and turn our focus toward the next man up.”

PADRES: Manny Machado says he plans to exercise the opt-out clause in his contract after this season.

Machado signed a 10-year, $300 million deal with the Padres in February 2019, a deal that gives him the right to terminate the agreement after this season and become a free agent. The third baseman, who turns 31 in July, would forfeit $150 million from his current deal, which calls for a $30 million annual salary through 2028.

“I’ve expressed that I will be opting out after this year, but I think my focus is not about 2024,” Machado said Friday. “I think my focus is about 2023 … what I’ve done for this organization and what we’re going to continue to do here.”

BRAVES: Right-hander Michael Soroka’s comeback from two Achilles surgeries is being slowed by tightness in his left hamstring. Manager Brian Snitker told reporters on Friday Soroka is being held back from throwing as a precaution after reporting to camp with the hamstring issue.

METS: Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander are back together for the first time in nearly a decade. The pair of three-time Cy Young Award winners threw off adjacent bullpen mounds Friday. The 38-year-old Scherzer and Verlander, who turns 40 on Monday, were teammates on the Detroit Tigers from 2010-14.

“They’re going to make the club,” manager Buck Showalter quipped.

Showalter hasn’t said which will start the March 30 opener at Miami.

HALL OF FAME: Fred McGriff and the Hall announced Friday that the cap on his induction plaque will be blank rather than have the logo of one of the six teams he played for.