Real or not? Kershaw in for his toughest stretch run yet

I watched Clayton Kershaw and Madison Bumgarner duel at Dodger Stadium on Monday with Felix Hernandez on my mind. I'm finishing up my vacation in Seattle and Hernandez was just demoted to the bullpen with a 5.73 ERA, obviously big news in Seattle with the Mariners battling for a playoff spot. Hernandez is only 32, but it's pretty clear his days as a starter are permanently in jeopardy barring some miracle turnaround or complete conversion to successful junkballer.

Kershaw is now 30, which seems impossible. Bumgarner is 29. They're still very good pitchers, among the best starters in the game when they've been able to take the mound this season. But Hernandez was still going strong at 29 as…