Los Angeles Dodgers workhorse Clayton Kershaw was kept fro his bullpen session Wednesday at Camelback Ranch as a precautionary measure do to some back stiffness, according to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
Wednesday was the first workout for pitchers and catchers at the Dodgers training facility, so skipper Don Mattingly wasn't too worried that Kershaw is going to miss a little time:
"He's been around for a while, we know he's young and he's thrown a lot of innings and we won't do anything to jeopardize him."
His first Cactus League start won't be the Dodgers 'opening day' on March 5, but not until March 9 against the Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium in in Surprise, AZ, so he still has some time to get himself fully ready to go.
Kershaw took home the NL pitching Triple Crown last year (wins, ERA and strikeouts), and finished third in MLB with a career-high 233 1/3 innings pitched. He's still only 23.
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