Clayton Kershaw finished the 2020 season with an ERA of 2.16. Again, a season with an ERA below 3.00, in Kershaw’s 13 seasons with the Dodgers so far, he already finished eleven seasons with an ERA below 3.00. He’s probably not the most dominant pitcher, but he’s still one of the elite pitchers in the majors.
In the 2020 season, Kershaw made 10 starts. He earned 6 wins and took 2 losses with a 0.84 WHIP. A 0.84 WHIP is the second lowest WHIP in a single season in his career, he posted a 0.72 WHIP in the 2016 season. It’s also interesting to note that Kershaw tossed 149 innings in 2016 and allowed only 8 home runs, however, he gave up 8 homers in this shortened season while he pitched 58.1 innings.
When we look at Kershaw’s pitch mix, he mainly relies on his four-seamer and slider. In this season, Kershaw threw 41.1% four-seamers and 39.9% sliders. Four-seamer usage of 41.1% is the lowest in his career so far. From 2008 to 2010, Kershaw threw his four-seamer more than 70% of the time. Then he gradually throws fewer fastballs.
In Kershaw’s first two seasons, slider wasn’t really his pitch arsenal. However, Kershaw’s slider has been one of the best sliders in the majors since 2010. He relies on his slider more and more recently. Since 2016, sliders have been thrown at least 30% each season. Clayton Kershaw's curveball is one of the most devastating pitches in MLB. The legendary voice of the Dodgers Vin Scully called it "Public Enemy No. 1". In the 2020 season, Kershaw threw it 18.8% of the time, second highest curveball usage in his career.
In the 2008 season, rookie Clayton Kershaw made his postseason debut against the Phillies in the NL Championship Series. He tossed 2 innings and used only two types of pitches, four-seamer and curveball. In 2009, he began to throw sliders in the postseason. He only allowed 2 runs in his first postseason start against the Cardinals in the 2009 NLDS. However, he gave up 7 runs (all earned) in 6.2 innings against the Phillies in the NLCS.
From 2010 to 2012, the Dodgers failed to clinch a playoff berth in three consecutive seasons. But, Kershaw won his first Cy Young award in 2011.
The Dodgers have won the NL West titles 8 times since 2013. Kershaw is the Ace of the Dodgers and the team definitely relies on him heavily in the postseason. Four-seam fastball is Kershaw’s primary pitch in the playoffs. Nevertheless, we can see that Kershaw’s fastball usage gradually decreased in the last 4 postseasons. 55% of four-seamer usage in 2016, but it dropped to only 34.3% last year. Meanwhile, Kershaw’s slider has become increasingly important. In particular, Kershaw threw more sliders than four-seamers in the 2019 NLDS. Also, Kershaw occasionally threw changeups and sinkers/two-seamers in the playoff.
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