Kershaw hoping to pitch this season

Dodgers ace has plan in place for possible comeback.

The distance between Clayton Kershaw and his intended target extended beyond 150 feet. As he stood in the outfield of Great American Ball Park on Friday afternoon, hours before the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 9-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, he raised his right leg and lunged forward to fling a baseball toward Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis.

Kershaw resembled, inside the contained environment of a game of catch, the pitcher who has dominated the National League for so many years.

Sidelined for nearly two months with a herniated disk, Kershaw met the Dodgers along the banks of the Ohio River. A timetable for his return remains elusive. But Kershaw remains optimistic he will pitch for the Dodgers this season.

“We’ve got a good plan in place to where I feel like I can contribute,” he said. “And, hopefully, if I’m pitching well enough, make a difference. Or, at least, help out.”

Kershaw (11-2, 1.79 ERA) declined to reveal many details from the plan, but his immediate schedule called for a 20-to-25-pitch bullpen session Saturday and a 40-to-45-pitch session Tuesday. Kershaw has not pitched since June 26. He has not thrown off a mound since he rushed into a simulated outing on July 16, which triggered a recurrence of discomfort in his back.

Earlier this week, manager Dave Roberts said he hoped Kershaw could make two or three starts during the regular season. Kershaw needs to rebuild the stamina necessary to last six or seven innings, which would likely require a series of minor league rehabilitation outings.

Orioles: Starting catcher Matt Wieters was placed on paternity leave. Wieters left the team Saturday to join his wife, Maria, who is due to give birth to the couple’s second child. Wieters, a fourtime All Star, is batting .240 with 10 homers and 45 RBIs in 91 games.

Pirates: Third baseman Jung Ho Kang was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left shoulder injury.

Kang will likely miss two to four weeks after being injured sliding head first into second base in the eighth inning of Pittsburgh’s 6-5 loss to the Miami Marlins on Friday.

Nationals: First baseman Ryan Zimmerman and catcher Jose Lobaton were reinstated from the 15-day disabled list. Zimmerman started Saturday night’s game against the Atlanta Braves.

Reds: Infielder Jose Peraza was recalled from Triple-A Louisville. Peraza was in the starting lineup at shortstop for Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He joined right-fielder Scott Schebler as two former Dodgers prospects in the starting lineup against the team they made their major league debuts with last season.

Angels: Third baseman Yunel Escobar was attempting to bunt his way on in the fourth inning when the ball went directly off his bat and hit him in the face Friday night. Escobar, who is hitting .320, might have to go on the disabled list, manager Mike Scioscia said.

Brewers: Brent Suter became the first left-handed pitcher to start for Milwaukee since Aug. 23, 2013. Milwaukee had used just righthanders in its starting rotation for nearly three calendar years — a span of 474 games. Suter snapped the secondlongest streak in major league history of righthanded starters.

The longest streak still belongs to the Dodgers, who used just right-handed starters for 681 straight games from 1992-97.

KEVORK Clayton Kershaw expects to throw 40 to 45 pitches Tuesday as he attempts to return this season from a herniated disk. Kershaw is 11-2 with a 1.79 ERA.