Clayton Kershaw’s postseason narrative only dies if he wins a World Series
By Amy Kaplan
Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw’s postseason narrative will only die when he brings a World Series win back to Los Angeles.
It seems that every season it’s the same exact thing … Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw blows it in the postseason.
The thing is, even when he doesn’t, somehow that reputation follow him and there really won’t be any way for the haunting narrative to die unless he wins a World Series.
Kershaw finished the regular season 18-4 with a 2.31 ERA and a WHIP of just 0.949, but somehow that fantastic season won’t be good enough for Dodgers fans who will be sitting with their hands over their eyes and every toe crossed that their golden boy won’t screw it all up — again.
The records show that Kershaw kinda stinks in the postseason (at least compared to his regular season stats). He has a 4-7 record with an ERA of 4.55 and a WHIP of 1.157 in the postseason overall compared to his 144-64 regular season record, 2.36 ERA and WHIP of 1.002.
We as fans often forget how demanding the post-season can be. The stress of an entire season resting on your shoulders, not to mention you’re facing the best in baseball day after day.
He’s not getting any easy games and I’m sure that knowing the entirety of the world is waiting for you to screw up doesn’t make things easier.
Even when you look at Game 1 of the 2014 NLDS against the Cardinals (Kershaw gave up eight runs in just over six innings) he still has an arguably better postseason start percentage (71) than the average (44). So why are we all still hating on Kershaw?
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Because he still hasn’t brought that World Series trophy back to LA, that’s why.
Dodgers fans run as thick as thieves, as loyal as they come — but we also don’t forget our heartbreaks and Kershaw has been at the center of many long nights of crying over baseball.
I have no doubt that the moment he wins that World Series (please, please, please be this season) we’ll wash all those bad memories away and replace them with the good.
That’s not too much to ask for right?