Clayton Kershaw is an American professional baseball player born in Dallas, Texas on March 19, 1988. He has played as a baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles dodgers of major league baseball, MLB. He has played in the major leagues since 2008. He is the son Christopher George Kershaw (his father) and Marianne Kershaw (his mother). He is the only son in his family. His parents divorced when he was 10. He was raised and cared by his mother. He is the great nephew of Clyde Tombaugh, an astronomer who discovered Pluto.
Kershaw played in youth sports league during his childhood, including Little League Baseball. He attended Highland Park High School where he played baseball. It was also the center for quarterback Matthew Stafford on the football university. He established himself as an elite high school prospect after a growth shoot and further development of his pitches in 2006. There he scored 13-0 record with an earned run average (ERA) of 0.77 and recorded 139 strikeouts in 64 innings pitched. He pitched an all-strikeout perfect game in a playoff game against Northwest High School of Justin, Texas. He also pitched for USA Baseball's which is a junior team in the Pan Am Championship. He was selected as the "High School Baseball Player of the Year" by the USA today and was also selected as the "Gatorade National Player of the Year. He was considered as the top high-school pitcher available during the 2006 Major league Baseball (MLB) draft.
Kershaw began his very first career with the gulf coast league dodgers, pitching 37 innings, striking out 54 batters compiling a record of 2-0 with 1.95 ERA. He was rated as the top prospect in gulf coast league and the second best prospect of the dodgers by baseball America behind third baseman, Andy Laroche. In 2007 he was promoted to the great lake's loons where he established the record of 7-5 with an ERA of 2.77. He then was selected as the player of the east team in the Midwest league all-star game and also the USA team in the all-star futures game. He was promoted to the double –a Jacksonville suns in the southern league on august, 6 2007. He established a record of 1-2 and 3.65 ERA in five starts and was selected as the top prospect in the dodgers' organization heading into the 2008 season.
The dodgers bought Kershaw's minor-league contract and were added to the active roster. According to sportswriter Tony Jackson, his debut was the most anticipated start by a dodger's pitcher after the major league debut by Hideo Nomo during the 1995 season. He won his first major league on July 27, 2008, which was against the Washington nationals. He pitched 7 innings, striking out 13 batters allowing a solo home run against the San Francisco giants. He was the youngest dodger to ever strike out 13 or more batter in a game after sandy Koufax who did it in 1995. He made his playoff starting debut in the national league division series against the St. Louis cardinals in the year 2009. By posting an ERA of 3.07 in April, he started the 2010 season. He did it by walking 22 batters in 29 innings.
Kershaw was titled as the opening day starter for the 2011 season by the dodgers after completing 2010 season. He became the first dodgers to strike out the side in the 9th inning after sandy Koufax's perfect game. He also became the first ever dodger started to have back to back complete game victories after Jeff weaver in 2005 season. He has brightened his career even more by becoming the first dodger to have double-digit strikeouts in consecutive starts after Chan Ho Park in the 2000 season. According to the Elias sports bureau, he was the first 23 years old pitcher who got many victories, an ERA that low and average of more than one strikeout per inning since ERA became an official statistic in 1910. Behind all these things he has achieved many more goals in the career. He was selected as a national league team player for the major league baseball all-star game in 2011. He finished his season for 2011 by leading the national league with 21 wins, 248 strikeouts, and a 2.28 ERA, winning the league pitching Triple Crown. He is the first Triple Crown winner after Jake Peavy of the 2007 San Diego padres.
Kershaw was born and grew up in Dallas, Texas. He attended school with quarterback Matthew Stafford and fellow pitchers Jordan Walden and Shawn Tolle son. His favorite player is Will Clark, former Texas rangers' first baseman. This is the main reason behind wearing number 22, honoring the Clark. His mother's name is Marianne Tombaugh and father's name is Christopher George Kershaw. His father Christopher was a musician and won a Clio award for his work. Christopher remarried after his divorce from Marianne and died in 2013.
Kershaw has a marital status. His girlfriend's name is Ellen Melson. After having an affair for seven years, they get married on December 4, 2010, in Houston, Texas. Ellen gave birth to their very first child, daughter on January 23, 2015. Her name is Cali Ann. on November 20, 2016, she gave birth to her second child, son. His name is Charlie Clayton Kershaw. All the members of the family are blessed and they are doing well.
In the 2011 season, Kershaw visited Zambia as a part of a Christian mission organized by Dallas-based arise Africa with his wife. He has a dream of building an orphanage in Lusaka, Zambia, which he called "hope's home" after meeting the 11-year-old child who was suffering from HIV positive. So, he donated 100 million dollars per strikeout recorded in 2011 to accomplish his mission. He donated 492,300 dollars towards his 70,000 dollars goal after his career high of 248 strikeouts that was recorded in 2011. He also donated 260,000 dollars to hope's home after winning the player's choice award in 2011. In 2012 season, he donated 100 dollars for every strikeout to Kershaw's challenge, calling that season's incarnation of the project "strike out to serve." he also supported the children of Zambia, raising the funds to pay for the surgeries of 170 children and new medical equipment for Cure hospital that is located in Lusaka. He continued his partnership with Cure International setting a goal of funding 100 surgeries for Cure hospital in the Dominican Republic. He has also helped with other programs in Los Angeles like habitat for humanity demolish and rehabilitate a house in Lynwood.
Kershaw stands 6 feet and 3 inches tall and weighs 220 pounds. He is an American baseball athlete who currently plays in the Major league Baseball for the Los Angeles Dodgers as the team's pitcher. He received his annual salary of 11 million dollars in 2013 and has an estimated net worth of 40 million in 2015.
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