LOS ANGELES (AP) — became the 20th pitcher with 3,000 strikeouts when Vinny Capra of the Chicago White Sox took a slider for a called third strike for the final out of the sixth inning on Wednesday night.
“It’s the last box for Clayton to check in his tremendous career,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game. “He’s never been a person to look for kind of acknowledgment or attention, but he’s earned that whether he likes it or not.”
The crowd was on its feet roaring as the Los Angeles Dodgers star walked off the mound to end the inning. He paused and doffed his cap, with teammates briefly holding off hugging him to allow him to soak in the cheers.
Kershaw waved to his wife and four children in the stands and then patted his heart and mouthed, “Thank you.”
The game was delayed while a tribute video played.
Capra, hitting ninth, was retired on four pitches, with plate umpire Jim Wolf calling the third strike on a slider, Kershaw’s 100th pitch of the night. Wolf is the brother of retired pitcher Randy Wolf, once a teammate of Kershaw’s.
Kershaw retired Lenyn Sosa on three pitches for his 2,999th strikeout in the fifth. Sosa fouled off Kershaw’s first two pitches before striking out on a 72 mph curveball to end the inning.
In the third, Miguel Vargas took called strikes on his first two pitches before he swung and missed on another 72-mph curveball from his former Dodgers teammate.
The White Sox swung aggressively against Kershaw, who gave up a two-run homer to Austin Slater and two more runs as Chicago led 4-2 after six innings.
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