Kershaw closed out the regular season with a win, and Shohei Ohtani believes he could still keep pitching.

To let the legend finish on a high note, the Dodgers in the 6th inning saw Clayton Kershaw strike out Eugenio Suárez, after which manager Dave Roberts brought in Freddie Freeman to pitch. Despite playing on the road, the entire crowd stood to applaud the legendary player.

The Dodgers defeated the Mariners 6-1 today, with Kershaw starting and pitching 5.1 innings, throwing 94 pitches, allowing 4 hits, no runs, and recording 7 strikeouts, earning his 11th win of the season.

Kershaw’s career stats now include 455 appearances (451 starts), 223 wins, 96 losses, a 2.53 ERA, and 3,052 strikeouts over 2,855.1 innings pitched.

When Freeman took the mound, he reached out for the ball in Kershaw’s hand, but Kershaw quickly pulled it back, intending to keep this final career strikeout ball as a memento. Interestingly, even after returning to the dugout, Freeman jokingly told him, “I want that ball,” to which Kershaw, without even looking, firmly replied “no,” causing laughter on the broadcast.

Freeman laughed and said he completely understood Kershaw’s refusal on the mound, so all he could say was “I love you” and “thank you,” leaving Kershaw to enjoy his moment. “He fought on the baseball field for 18 years, which is incredible. All I could do was give him a hug and let him know how much he means to us.”

Kershaw’s performance this season clearly shows he could still compete. When asked after the game if he might reconsider retirement, he smiled and said, “No, that won’t happen.” He also mentioned he didn’t want to retire due to injury or because he couldn’t get hitters out anymore, “So, this is perfect for now.”

Kershaw stated that at this moment, he still feels confident: “If I’m needed to get hitters out next month (October), I feel like I can still do it, but after that, I won’t need to anymore.”

In a postgame interview, when asked about Kershaw’s “final start,” Shohei Ohtani expressed deep admiration: “Is he really retiring? He pitched so brilliantly that it feels like he could still keep going.”

In the 7th inning, during his 4th at-bat, Ohtani smashed a home run off the opposing lefty’s third pitcher, Gabe Speier, that landed in the center field stands, marking his 55th homer of the season and setting a new personal single-season record. He said, “Hitting that many home runs naturally increases the team’s chances of winning. Breaking my own record today feels really great.”

However, he quickly emphasized, “Starting tomorrow, I need to switch my mindset and focus on the playoffs.” Additionally, Ohtani had a double to right field in his first at-bat and got another hit in his second. When asked if he aimed for a perfect game in his final fifth at-bat, he said, “I wasn’t thinking about that, just hoping to finish the regular season on a good note and prepare well for the playoffs. Getting 3 hits today means I’m entering the postseason with good momentum.” Finally, Ohtani called out, “We have to fight until the very end, stay united as a team, and carry this energy into the playoffs.”