Joey Bart gets rude introduction to Giants-Dodgers rivalry from Clayton Kershaw

The surprising Giants face off against a behemoth in the red-hot LA Dodgers

The Giants-Dodgers rivalry is one of the more historic in baseball history, dating all the way back to pre-1950, when the teams left New York City for sunny California. In more recent times, their battles for the NL West, especially in even-numbered years where the Giants seemingly always come out of nowhere to compete for a World Series, have become some of the most appetizing matchups in the MLB today.

A number of games are canceled on Thursday in protest of police brutality after the recent evens in Kenoshaw, Wisc., but the Dodgers and Giants opted to play. For San Francisco, top prospect Joey Bart has been a much-needed reinforcement behind the plate, especially with Buster Posey sitting out the season due to the pandemic. Unfortunately for him, they don’t have any pitchers of Clayton Kershaw’s caliber in the minor leagues, or even in split-squad games, for that matter.

Bart struck out on three of the filthiest pitches we’ve seen from Kershaw this season

Kershaw’s 2.29 ERA and 29 strikeouts entering Thursday contest are impressive, even for him. Bart, whose job it is to get the most out of the Giants pitching staff, can surely respect the clinic the future Hall of Famer put on display against him.

This is the baseball version of a nasty crossover, or being put on a poster thanks to a dunk attempt. Very rarely does the sport offer a moment of pure humiliation, but such is the case when you’re facing one of the best pitchers of your generation. World Series to his name or not, Kershaw is a legend for moments just like these.