When you get into a fight with a drunk, you don’t hit him with your pitching hand. Furthermore, when you run into an outfield wall, you don’t lead with your pitching shoulder.
At least Clayton Kershaw got that right.
The Dodgers left-hander, effectively wild this season while compiling an 8-8 record with a 2.89 ERA in 28 starts, joined the annals of odd sports injuries when he ran into the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium on Monday while shagging fly balls during batting practice.
He’ll have to miss Friday’s start — at least — with a bruised right (non-throwing) shoulder.
“I wish it didn’t happen. It was one of those freak things. I feel bad. I kind of feel like I’m letting the team down a little bit by missing a start,” said Kershaw, whose ERA is ninth in the NL.
“It is obviously pretty disappointing. It’s really frustrating, too. At the same time, it is what it is. I just have to get better now.”
Luckily for the Dodgers, they have plenty of bodies in the rotation with the acquisitions of Vicente Padilla and Jon Garland. If Randy Wolf is moved up from his Saturday start, he would still be going on the standard five days’ rest. So there is no need to rush Kershaw back, even though the weekend series against the Giants is a big one.
Meanwhile, someone should give Kershaw a map of Dodger Stadium, since he doesn’t seem to know his way around out there.
“I wasn’t running really hard, but at the same time if you don’t know something is there and you run into it, you don’t brace for it at all,” Kershaw said.
Don’t know it’s there? That big blue thing? In your home park? Oh well, at least he didn’t do this …
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If you Twitter, and laugh in the face of wall danger, feel free to follow me at @Bharks.
