PHOENIX -- As southpaw Clayton Kershaw has worked his way back from offseason surgeries on his left knee and left toe, he's made tuneups in Oklahoma City, Okla.; Springdale, Ark.; and Glendale, Ariz.
His next start should come on a more familiar mound in Los Angeles.
Kershaw struck out two and allowed a pair of runs on two hits and two walks in what should be his final rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday afternoon. He threw 57 pitches (35 strikes) across four innings, a slightly lighter workload than in his previous start, as had been expected.
The lefty is eligible to be activated from the 60-day injured list next weekend, and given both his and the Dodgers' schedules, he should be lined up to start next Sunday against the Angels at Dodger Stadium.
Meanwhile in Phoenix, the Dodgers split their four-game set against the D-backs with an 8-1 victory to close out their three-city road trip. L.A. finished its longest stint away from home with six wins in 10 games against Atlanta, Miami and Arizona.
When Kershaw takes the mound for the first time in his 18th big league season, he'll tie Zack Wheat and Bill Russell for the most in franchise history. He and Russell are the only ones to play 18 seasons with the Dodgers since they moved to L.A. in 1958.
It's a rarity nowadays to have an active franchise icon like Kershaw, who intends to spend his entire career with the Dodgers. The 37-year-old lefty has won three Cy Young Awards and one MVP Award, and he's been selected to 10 All-Star teams. He owns a lifetime 2.50 ERA, and his 156 ERA+ ranks first in MLB history among pitchers with at least 2,000 innings.
He's racked up 212 career wins and sits 32 strikeouts shy of 3,000, which should make his Hall of Fame case an easy one for voters.
Kershaw made only seven starts for the Dodgers last year before his season ended in late August due to pain in his left big toe. He had to watch from the sidelines as his team surged to the eighth World Series title in franchise history, which was one of many motivating factors to return in 2025.
"I hope this is the last time I have to rehab. I'm kind of done with that," Kershaw said during Spring Training. "But at the same time, I don't want that to be the reason that I stop playing. … Hopefully I can walk out on my own terms, whenever that is, but it just didn't feel like it was the right time."
Throughout Kershaw's rehab, he has maintained that while his arm is in good shape, his surgically repaired toe is a little farther behind, impacting the final push-off in his delivery. The toe has continued to feel better with every outing, according to the reports manager Dave Roberts has received.
Kershaw's prospective return comes with the Dodgers already down a couple of arms in the rotation. Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are on the 15-day injured list with inflammation in their throwing shoulders, and both are still a ways away from returning.