On the surface, Clayton Kershaw’s spotless inning of work in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 5-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox in the Cactus League opener on Saturday was par for the course. He needed just 12 pitches to retire the side in order, collecting one strikeout in the process.
Ever the perfectionist, the Dodgers’ ace saw room for improvement. Kershaw described his results as “OK.” There was frustration over a lack of fastball command, falling behind in the count to each hitter, and he yelled in disgust after floating a changeup to the plate, which was called for ball.