The Dodgers are known for having top-of-the line training staff, and athletic development coordinator Eric Yavarone is no exception. He’s been working with Clayton Kershaw extensively this season with incredible results: Kershaw is coming off of a perfect August, going 5-0 in his starts. What’s the secret? Something Yavarone calls “the bowl,” writes Jack Harris at the Los Angeles Times.
The bowl is how Yavarone describes the hip, pelvis, and lower back area. For Kershaw, who has a history of back issues,
the concept allowed him to think of moving and maintaining the area in a new way. He’s been feeling much better on a daily basis, allowing him to remain more consistent on the mound.
Consistency has long been the name of Kershaw’s game. He’s known for maintaining the same routines, from pre-game rituals to his workout regimen, but he’s also been open to tweaks when needed—to a point. He worried that altering his routines too much would affect his pitching, Harris writes, until Yavarone introduced the bowl.
“It was giving him more of the ‘why,’ showing him the anatomy part of it,” Yavarone said. “I think with him, if he feels you believe in what you want him to do, if you’re convicted when you tell him what you got for him, I think he likes that.”
From changing breathing patterns to new weightlifting and mobility drills, Kershaw has adjusted his long-held habits and seen results because of it, feeling looser and healthier than ever.
“I haven’t heard boo about anything as far as any physical kind of thing, outside of just the grind of the season,” manager Dave Roberts said.
Dodgers Notes
Will Smith’s pinch-hit, walk-off homer on Sunday saved the Dodgers from being swept. Could it be the beginning of a much-needed turnaround for the Dodgers at the plate? Let’s hope so, writes Doug Padilla at the Orange County Register.
The Red Sox released Walker Buehler on Friday, and he’s already found a new home with the Philadelphia Phillies, writes Matt Gelb at The Athletic. He’s signed to a minor-league deal but is scheduled to start in the majors on September 12 as part of a six-man rotation.
We already know that the Dodgers’ head-to-head record with the Padres could make a big difference come playoffs, but several other divisions could come down to tiebreakers as well, as Dayn Perry outlines at CBS Sports.
