Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw, who underwent an MRI on his left shoulder prior to the All-Star break, on Friday said he’ll miss “a few weeks” before returning to the rotation in early August.
Kershaw has been battling inflammation in the shoulder and was placed on the injured list on July 3. He received a cortisone injection and was told by Dr. Neal ElAttrache to let the shoulder heal.
He was eligible to return on Saturday.
Kershaw, 35, had served as the anchor of the Dodgers’ beleaguered pitching staff for the first half of this season, going 10-4 with a 2.55 ERA while striking out 105 batters in 95⅓ innings and taking every turn through the rotation. His production earned him his 10th selection to the All-Star Game.
He established himself as arguably the best pitcher of his era by combining dominance with reliability, averaging 222 innings per season while posting a 2.24 ERA from 2010 to 2015. But the three-time Cy Young Award winner hasn’t surpassed the 200-inning mark since. The ensuing eight years have included 11 trips to the IL.
The Dodgers on Friday also signed free agent outfielder Jake Marisnick, a member of the 2017 Houston Astros world championship team who most recently was designated for assignment by the Detroit Tigers.
Marisnick told reporters that he’s willing to talk about the 2017 sign-stealing scandal with his new teammates if need be.
“Does you no good to kind of hide from it,” Marisnick told reporters, adding that a few of his new teammates have already joked with him about it.
Marisnick, a high school teammate of Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes, is batting .225 this season with two home runs and 10 RBIs. Since entering the majors in 2013, he’s played for the Marlins, Astros, Mets, Cubs, Pirates, White Sox and Tigers and has a .228 career batting average.
In other moves, Chris Taylor also was activated, Jonny Deluca was sent to Triple-A Oklahoma City and Shelby Miller was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez contributed to this report.