Kershaw and Ohtani are Hollywood’s most famous stars

Ohtani, the Babe Ruth of the 21st Century, is 0 for 8 in his batting career against Kershaw with four strikeouts, three strikeouts and one on double play. He is no-hitter against just two others he has faced several times: Wade LeBlanc (0 for 11) and Justus Sheffield (0 for 13).

The only thing that makes him great is his ability to delay batters, and his command obviously, Ohtani said Monday through translator Ippei Mizuhara.

Sitting in the sunshine at the center field pavilion at Dodger Stadiums, not far from a statue of Dodgers great Sandy Koufax, Ohtani marveled at the 34-year-old southpaw, six years his senior.

He makes every throw, he rarely misses his runs, rarely leaves the ball in the middle of the plate, Ohtani said. Every pitch he makes is really quality.

Kershaw’s face flushed when he talked about his success against the blushing Ohtani or the beating 85 degree sun, hard to say which.

Last Friday night in Anaheim, Kershaw had a perfect game in the eighth inning and held Ohtani hitess in three at bats, striking him out twice.

I don’t know how I got it out, Kershaw said. Guess I’ll try to get it out again tomorrow and see what happens.

Shane McClanahan becomes the second Tampa Bay pitcher to start an All-Star Game after David Price in 2010 at Anaheim. All-Star for the first time, the 25-year-old southpaw is 10-3 with a major league-leading 1.71 ERA and 147 strikeouts in 110 2/3 innings.

Tell you the truth, I’ve never seen him pitch and we haven’t played him at all this year, but everyone I’ve talked to says he’s mean, Houstons Dusty says Baker, the AL manager.

Nine-time All-Star, 34-year-old Kershaw is 7-2 with a 2.14 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 71 2/3 innings. Two years ago, he helped Los Angeles win its first World Series title since 1988.

His reputation, what he meant to the game of baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers, I think it’s just perfect that he’s starting this game for us in the National League, said NL manager Brian Atlanta Snitker.

Ohtani, a two-time All-Star and the reigning AL MVP, is a baseball unicorn: Batting .258 with 19 home runs, 56 RBIs and 10 stolen bases, while going 9-4 with a 2 ERA. .38 as a right-handed pitcher. with 123 strikeouts and 22 walks in 87 innings.

It’s really great for baseball game. To have someone like that to be able to excel at both the way he does is amazing, Kershaw said. It’s fun to watch too, as a fan of the game.

Ohtani decided not to play it back and forth in this year’s All-Star Game.

I’m going to pitch Game 1 after the All-Star break, Ohtani said, looking ahead to Friday in Atlanta. that will only leave me two days in between. Obviously, I favor the season more than the All-Star Game.

Kershaw, who passed Don Sutton in April for the lead in team career strikeouts, will become the third Dodgers pitcher to start in the last seven All-Star Games, following Zack Greinke in 2015 in Cincinnati and Hyun Jin Ryu in 2019 in Cleveland. He will be the 13th pitcher to start at his home stadium, the first since former teammate Max Scherzer in 2018 in Washington.

Kershaw thought of his daughter Cali and his sons Chance, Charley and Cooper.

As you get older, everything relativizes a bit more with this game and how special it is, Kershaw said. I was just trying to hang on a little longer so they would see it. I think my daughter is 7 and my oldest son is 5, and I have a 2 year 7 month old who probably won’t remember. But 7 and 5 year olds, it’s just fun to see it through their eyes, and I hope I bring them here to watch the Home Run Derby and just see it. I think they’re starting to understand baseball a little more.

In the San Fernando Valley, Charley plays youth ball at Toluca Lake with Charlie Freeman, the son of Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. Both are 5.

It was fun. I think they’re doing this again in about two months of joy, kids playing baseball, there’s nothing better than that, Freeman said. Unfortunately, we are not there for every game and every practice, so we, these other coaches, do their job.

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