Clayton Kershaw was reduced to tears early Sunday after joining his family on the field at Rogers Centre in Toronto, where his Dodgers won their second straight World Series to conclude his epic 18-year career with L.A. in winning fashion.
The legendary lefty — who revealed his retirement plans in September — warmly embraced wife Ellen and their children after he played the final game of his career, a 5-4 Dodgers victory over the Blue Jays in an 11-inning Game 7 thriller.
“Oh, my God,” Kershaw, 37, said with tears streaming down his face.
Ellen, who is expecting her fifth child with Kershaw, also fought back tears as she greeted the three-time Cy Young winner during the jubilant celebrations.
Tied at three games apiece entering Saturday’s must-win matchup, the Dodgers rallied back from a three-run deficit as Toronto’s Alejandro Kirk grounded into a double play at the bottom of the 11th to seal the win for Los Angeles — a moment Kershaw wasn’t privy to at first.
“When he hit the double play, I thought the run scored and it was tied. I had no idea. I thought I had the next batter,” Kershaw said.
“[Catcher Josh Bard] Bardo was there and he looked at me, he said, `We just won the World Series’ and I was like, `Are you sure?’”
As the Dodgers gathered in the locker room to celebrate, manager Dave Roberts opened the floor to Kershaw, who made his debut for the team in 2008.
“It’s an absolute honor to be in this clubhouse with you guys, I love every single one of you,” a shirtless Kershaw began. “I can’t imagine a better way to go out than to pop bottles with this group — we’re back-to-back champs!”
The Dodgers became the first club to repeat as World Series champs since the Yankees’ three-year reign from 1998-2000. Los Angeles dominated the Bombers in five during last year’s Fall Classic.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
