Clayton Kershaw

On Thursday night, Dodgers prospect Clayton Kershaw was pulled from his start after just one inning. He’s healthy, he’s pitching well, and the Dodgers need a fifth starter exactly five days from last night. Putting two and two together, it’s becoming obvious that Kershaw will be making his major league debut next Tuesday in Wrigley Field.

So, what should Dodgers fans expect from Kershaw?

Let’s start with his stuff. Kershaw features a 93-96 MPH fastball from the left side and a knee buckling 72-78 MPH curveball that is a true knockout pitch. He’s fiddled with a change-up, but I wouldn’t expect to see much of it on Tuesday; 20 year olds making their major league debut often stick with what they’re comfortable with, and Kershaw’s most comfortable with his top two offerings. Command had been his primary concern heading into this season (he walked 15.9% of batters he faced in Double-A last year), but he’s improved his fastball location and is learning to pitch more efficiently. However, he’s still not a great bet to work deep in games right off the bat.

Kershaw’s fastball/curveball combination gets him plenty of strikeouts, drawing comparisons from Dave Righetti to Josh Beckett, though he adds in the wrinkle of being a southpaw as well. His minor league career strikeout rate is right around 30%, and even when matched up against Double-A hitters, his inexperience hasn’t stopped him from ringing them up left and right. Kershaw’s stuff is good enough to get a lot of swings and misses, no matter what caliber of hitter he’s facing.

Generally, when a kid this good comes up from the minors, the adjustment period isn’t a long one. He will take some lumps as he grows, but let’s not confuse him with good but not great pitching prospects who have come up before their time and struggled. Kershaw has all the skills to be a legitimate major league starter right now, and the Dodgers are making the right call by sticking him in their rotation. The race for the N.L. West is a two team sprint, and the Dodgers are on the verge of adding a pretty significant horse.

Tuesday should be a lot of fun.