Dodgers News: Clayton Kershaw Gives Praise To Former Teammate Ahead of NLDS
The brotherhood of the MLB can't be understated, even if it means praising an NL West rival player. Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw knows greatness when he sees it and he doesn't hold back when talking about his former teammate Manny Machado.
Machado spent the second half of one season with the Dodgers in 2018 before ultimately signing with the Padres in a massive 10 year $300 million deal. It was enough of a lasting impact to leave for Kershaw to know see how great Machado was and still continues to be (quotes via Marty Caswell, MartyTimeTV).
“I’ve always had a big respect for Manny, when he played with us, and now coming over here playing against him all the time, he’s just a great player. And you can kind of build around him, because you know he’s going to post every day, he’s a lot like Freddie for us, he’s just going to post every day, go out there, play great defense, get big hits.”
The six time All-Star enters his 11th season in the league and still does not look like he will be slowing down anytime soon. This season Machado 32 Home Runs and 102 RBI's on a .298 batting average, all stats good enough for his sixth All-Star selection.
“I think he’s just a great player. I think he can roll out of bed and hit .300 and play Gold Glove defense…I don’t know much about their clubhouse but it does feel like he kind of maybe has a little bit more of a leadership role maybe, and it kind of runs through him a little bit I feel like, it just seems that way from the other side at least.”
Respect remains at an all time high but Kershaw is all business when it comes to the playoffs. If this is the last time Kershaw will face Machado in his career, he will do whatever it takes to come out on top.
