Dodgers' Kershaw soaks in ovation in possible L.A. farewell - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — It ended with a fastball, dotted on the lower edge of the zone to strike out Rafael Devers looking. It was the first out of Friday's fifth inning and perhaps the final pitch Clayton Kershaw will ever throw at Dodger Stadium.

Kershaw, who announced his retirement at season's end, dispersed hugs with the infielders upon seeing Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts emerge from the dugout to remove him from his final regular-season home start. Roberts, his manager the past 10 years, shook Kershaw's hand, wrapped him in a hug, shared some words, then watched as the eventual Hall of Fame left-hander soaked in a raucous standing ovation from a sold-out crowd.

Kershaw lifted his hat to the fans, hugged his teammates in the dugout, then came out once more for a curtain call.

Kershaw, 37, wasn't at his best in this matchup against the San Francisco Giants. He walked four, navigated several prolonged at-bats and allowed a couple of runs. But, as he has so often these past few years, he found a way to navigate a game and left his team with a chance to win.

The night began with Kershaw alone on the mound. His teammates stayed back in the dugout briefly, wanting to give Kershaw and Dodgers fans a moment to themselves. Kershaw urged them back onto the field and allowed a leadoff home run to Heliot Ramos on his third pitch of the game. He wound up throwing 23 pitches in the first inning, later working around a walk and an error.

He did something similar in the second, issuing a couple of walks before inducing a couple of infield popups. And in the third, which featured a double by Matt Chapman and a run-scoring single by Wilmer Flores. And the fourth, when he worked around a leadoff hit. But he limited damage.

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