Clayton Kershaw is done. He hung them up after the 2025 season. It feels weird saying that, right? For nearly two decades, the shaggy-haired lefty with that funky, pause-at-the-top delivery was the one constant in a sport that changes every five minutes. If you look at any stat for Clayton Kershaw, you aren’t just looking at a box score. You’re looking at a historical anomaly.
Kershaw didn't just play baseball; he solved it for about ten years straight. People love to argue about his postseason "choker" narrative—and we’ll get into the messy reality of those numbers—but the regular season stuff? It’s basically untouchable.
Most fans think they know how good he was. They don't. Not really. When you actually peel back the layers of his 18-season career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, you realize we might not see a left-hander this dominant for another fifty years. Honestly, the gap between Kershaw and "everyone else" during his peak was a chasm.
✨ Don't miss: DJ Moore: Why the Chicago Bears’ Most Reliable Weapon Still Matters
The ERA That Doesn't Make Sense
Let’s talk about the big one. 2.53.
That is Kershaw’s career ERA after 2,855.1 innings of work. To put that in perspective, he has the lowest career ERA of any starting pitcher in the Live Ball Era (since 1920) with at least 1,500 innings. Think about the legends who played in that span. Bob Gibson. Sandy Koufax. Greg Maddux. Pedro Martinez. None of them finished with a career mark lower than Kersh.
His 2025 season was a vintage goodbye. Even at 37, dealing with the aftermath of shoulder surgery and various lower-body issues, he posted an 11-2 record with a 3.36 ERA. He wasn't the 95-mph flamethrower anymore, but he was still better than most teams' number two starters.
Why ERA+ is the better stat for Clayton Kershaw
Raw ERA is great, but it doesn't account for the fact that Kershaw pitched through some high-offense years. That’s where ERA+ comes in. This stat normalizes a pitcher’s ERA across the entire league, where 100 is average.
Kershaw finished his career with a 154 ERA+.
That is tied with Pedro Martinez for the highest in MLB history among pitchers with at least 2,000 innings. Basically, Kershaw was 54% better than the average pitcher for nearly two decades. Most guys are lucky to have one season at that level. He had a whole career there.
The 3,000 Strikeout Club and the Magic of 200 Wins
In July 2025, Kershaw finally hit the big one. 3,000 strikeouts. He’s one of only 20 pitchers to ever do it. Among lefties? Just four. He joins Randy Johnson, Steve Carlton, and CC Sabathia.
But here’s the stat for Clayton Kershaw that actually blows my mind: He reached 200 career wins before he reached 100 career losses.
He finished 223-96. That is a .699 winning percentage.
- It’s the highest winning percentage for any pitcher with 200 wins since 1900.
- He is the only pitcher in the modern era to reach 200 wins without hitting triple digits in the loss column.
- The Dodgers went 302-147 in his 451 career starts.
If you bet on the Dodgers every time Kershaw took the mound for 18 years, you’d be a very wealthy person. He basically guaranteed a win seven out of every ten times he stepped on the rubber.
The October Problem: What Really Happened?
We have to talk about it. It’s the elephant in the room. His postseason ERA is 4.62.
That’s a full two runs higher than his regular-season mark. Critics use this to say he wasn't "clutch," but if you dig into the game logs, the story is more about usage than "choking." Between 2013 and 2016, the Dodgers used Kershaw like a rented mule.
Managers like Don Mattingly would often bring him back on three days' rest or leave him in for the 7th and 8th innings when he was clearly gassed. In the 2014 NLDS against the Cardinals, Kershaw cruised through six innings twice, only to be left in until he gave up back-to-back hits in the 7th. The bullpen would then come in and surrender a home run, charging those runners to Kershaw.
📖 Related: Tony Gwynn Jr Baseball Career: Why the Son of Mr. Padre Still Matters
He was also the victim of the 2017 Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal. In Game 5 of that World Series, Kershaw didn't get a single swing-and-miss on his slider or curveball—pitches that were usually unhittable. He was better in 2020, going 4-1 with a 2.93 ERA to finally get his first ring. He got two more in 2024 and 2025, though he was largely a cheerleader in '24 due to those bone spurs.
A Breakdown of the Peak (2011-2014)
If you want to see the most insane four-year stretch in pitching history, look at these numbers. Kershaw led the MLB in ERA for four straight seasons. No one else has ever done that.
- 2011: 2.28 ERA (Triple Crown winner)
- 2012: 2.53 ERA
- 2013: 1.83 ERA
- 2014: 1.77 ERA (MVP and Cy Young)
During this window, his WHIP (Walks + Hits per Inning Pitched) was consistently under 1.00. In 2014, it was a laughable 0.857. You basically had to hope he’d accidentally hit you with a pitch to get on base.
What Most People Get Wrong About His Legacy
People think Kershaw was just a "system" pitcher or benefited from Dodger Stadium. While Chavez Ravine is a pitcher’s park, his road ERA was often just as good. In 2022, he was actually better on the road (2.17 ERA) than at home (2.39 ERA).
The real secret was his slider. Early in his career, he was a curveball specialist (the "Public Enemy No. 1" pitch). But as he aged, he leaned into a hard, 88-mph slider that looked exactly like his fastball until it took a left turn at the plate. By 2023, he was throwing that slider nearly 44% of the time.
He adapted. He survived the "velocity era" where everyone throws 100 mph by simply being smarter and having better command. Even in his final start at T-Mobile Park against the Mariners in late 2025, he tossed 5.1 shutout innings. He left the game to a standing ovation, not because he was throwing heat, but because he was still painting corners.
Moving Forward: The Hall of Fame Lock
Kershaw is a first-ballot Hall of Famer. There is zero debate. If you're looking for actionable ways to appreciate this stat for Clayton Kershaw now that he's retired, here is what you should do:
- Watch the 2014 No-Hitter: It’s on YouTube. He struck out 15 Rockies and didn't walk a single soul. The only baserunner reached on an error. It’s widely considered the most dominant no-hitter ever thrown.
- Compare his FIP: Look at his Fielding Independent Pitching (2.86 career). It proves he wasn't just "lucky" with his defense. He genuinely suppressed hard contact for two decades.
- Ignore the "Playoff Choker" Memes: Context matters. High usage, short rest, and a specific trash-can-banging team in 2017 skewed the numbers of a guy who was actually quite good in many October starts.
Kershaw finished his career with 77.6 Baseball-Reference WAR. That puts him 19th all-time among pitchers in the Live Ball Era. He gave the Dodgers 18 years of elite service, stayed with one team, and retired as the greatest pitcher of his generation. Stats don't lie, even if they sometimes hide the full story.