Excitement over Clayton Kershaw recording his 3000th strikeout was tempered when only moments before Max Muncy injured his knee on a stolen base attempt by Michael A. Taylor in the top of the sixth inning. He had to be helped off the field and into the dugout. It was a scary moment, followed by one of the greatest moments. Talk about a dichotomy of events. That’s baseball for you. While the Dodgers may be without Muncy for a while, the night ended on a high note with the Dodgers mounting a ninth-inning rally scoring three runs and eventually walking off the White Sox with a Freddie Freeman base-hit.
Even though Kershaw notched his 3000th punchout, he did not have a great start. He entered the night needing just three to get the milestone, but didn’t get his first strikeout of the night until the top of the third inning. He made almost 30 pitches in the top of the first inning as the White Sox jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Austin Slater tripled and scored on an Andrew Benintendi single. A great catch from Michael Conforto against the left field wall kept the Pale Hose from scoring additional runs. The Dodgers tied and then took the lead in the following frames with a pair of solo home runs from Will Smith and Andy Pages off of Chicago opener Brandon Esiert and right hander Sean Burke.
in the third inning, Kershaw recorded strikeout number 2,998 by whiffing former Dodger Migueal Vargas. Unfortunately in that frame SLater’s two-run home run put Chicago back in front by a 3-2 score. With Kershaw’s pitch count increasing, he went into the top of fifth still with only one strikeout, but got Leoyn Sosa to chase for number 2,999. Dodger’s manager Dave Roberts told the media that he would manage this game a little differently. Meaning, he would give Kershaw some extra rope. So when Alex Vesia got up in the bullpen in the fifth, he was told to sit down and Kershaw came back out for the sixth.
No. 2,998. pic.twitter.com/plXQ8t8mLU
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 3, 2025
No. 2,999. pic.twitter.com/OYdFOXbEZw
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 3, 2025
The White Sox had tacked on another run to take a 4-2 lead, but nobody cared. Everyone just wanted to see Kershaw reach this incredible milestone at Dodger Stadium, but he was running out of time. He had one more inning to do it. With one out, Michael A. Taylor Attempted to steal third, with Will Smith’s snap throw just a bit off causing Muncy to come accross the bag to make the tag. Taylor slid into him and Muncy’s knee hit Taylor’s batting helmet. He got the out, but went down writhing in pain. For a brief minute, we forgot about Kershaw’s chase for 3000, focused entirely now on Muncy’s left knee. He had to be helped off the field with Enrique Hernandez replacing him at third. With two outs and Kershaw nearing 100 pitches, he struck out Vinny Capra looking on a called third strike for number 3000. With this being the end of the inning helped give the crowd a few extra minutes to honor Kershaw. The Dodgers put up a graphic on the videoboard of Kershaw across a backdrop of a 3000. Kershaw tipped his cap to the crowd while receiving a standing ovation. It was deserved. Even though Kershaw allowed four earned runs across six innings on nine hits, not one person at Dodger Stadium cared about his pitching line. Clayton Kershaw becomes just the twentieth pitcher to have 3000 or more career strikeouts. He did with wife Ellen and their children in the stands in almost the same seats when he pitched his no-hitter back in 2014.
Strikeout No. 3,000!
Clayton Kershaw becomes the 20th pitcher in Major League Baseball history to record 3,000 career strikeouts. pic.twitter.com/mD7tM1POJC
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 3, 2025
Thankfully the Dodgers rallied to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. Conforto singled, Tommy Edman and Hyeseong Kim both walked to load the bases. After Shohei Ohtani’s fielder’s choice plated a run, a sacrifice fly from Mookie Betts tied the game and set up the walk-off from Freddie. If only Muncy hadn’t been injured, it would have been a perfect night. We don’t know how severe his injury is yet, but if Muncy is out for any extended amount of time, that is bound to change the Dodger’s trade deadline plans. It’s a shame too, because Muncy and his new glasses has been crushing the ball over the last month. it wasn’t his age or poor batting mechanics that were the problem this season, he just couldn’t see the ball.
Getting back to Kershaw, what an incredible career. He’s accomplished everything. He’s won 20 games, pitched a no-hitter, won ERA titles, led the league in strikeouts, (he had one season with 300 strikeouts) won a pitching triple Crown, Won a National League MVP, three Cy Young Awards, and even hit a go ahead home run in the same game he tossed a complete game shutout win. He also won two World Series championships, built orphanages for starving children in Africa, published a book, and has struckout 3000 hitters. He is not only the greatest pitcher of our generation, but he is also a great man. He is a legend. Congratulations Clayton, your career has meant so much to the Dodgers and the city of Los Angeles.
