PHOENIX —
The way Clayton Kershaw sees it, he has faced few truly “big decisions” in his life.
“I got drafted by the Dodgers, married the same girl from high school,” the veteran pitcher and future Hall of Famer said Thursday. “I didn’t have many decisions to make along the way.”
This past winter, however, was different.
Kershaw entered free agency for a third straight offseason, once again picking between a return to the Dodgers or a move to his hometown Texas Rangers. But this time, the 35-year-old left-hander also had to consider retirement more seriously than ever before, knowing that in order to extend his 16-year playing career, he would have to undergo his first surgical procedure to repair injuries to ligaments and the capsule in his left shoulder.