LA Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw earns NL Player of the Week honor

After throwing a 15-strikeout no-hitter in one of the most dominant pitching performances in recent history, starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers has been named National League Player of the Week for the period ending June 22.  The Dodgers lead all Major League clubs with 22 no-hitters all-time.

Kershaw (7-2, 2.52 ERA) was unhittable in his only start of the week, leading the Dodgers to an 8-0 victory and completing a three-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.  The three-time N.L. All-Star needed just 107 pitches (79 strikes) in 9 innings of work to earn his first career no-hitter.

Kershaw faced just one batter over the minimum and did not issue a walk.  But for a Hanley Ramirez error in the seventh inning, Kershaw would have thrown a perfect game.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, his 15 strikeouts were the most in Major League history by a pitcher that did not allow a runner to reach base via hit, walk, or hit-by-pitch. The previous mark of 14 strikeouts in such a performance was shared by Nap Rucker (September 5, 1908), Sandy Koufax (September 9, 1965), and Matt Cain (June 13, 2012).  In addition, the 15 strikeouts were tied for third-most overall in a no-hitter, and tied for the most by a left-hander, matching Hall of Famer Warren Spahn (15 on September 16, 1960).

Kershaw’s no-no came just 24 days after his teammate Josh Beckett threw his first career no-hitter (May 25 vs. PHI), marking the shortest span between no-hitters by a team since Cincinnati’s Johnny Vander Meer did it in consecutive starts on June 11 and 15, 1938 (Elias Sports Bureau).

Other noteworthy performances last week included Kershaw’s Dodger teammate Hyun-Jin Ryu (2-0, 1.50 ERA, 8 SO, 12.0 IP); Colorado’s Corey Dickerson (.500, 11 H, 2 HR, 6 RBI, .955 SLG, .522 OBP); Atlanta’s Freddie Freeman (.394, 13 H, 4 2B, HR, .667 SLG, .412 OBP); Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard (.345, 6 R, 10 H, 3 HR, 9 RBI, .690 SLG, .441 OBP); and Milwaukee’s Aramis Ramirez (.500, 9 R, 14 H, 4 2B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, .964 SLG, .517 OBP).

By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com and news services