Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw exits early against Diamondbacks with toe pain

PHOENIX — Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw faced just seven batters Friday night before leaving with what the team said was pain in the big toe on his left foot.

No further information on the severity of the issue was immediately available.

Kershaw started the opener of a four-game series at Chase Field, an important faceoff between the division-leading Dodgers and their closest pursuers, the Arizona Diamondbacks who started the night four games back in the National League West.

Kershaw, 36, took the mound in the bottom of the first inning with a 2-0 lead thanks to a two-run home run by Freddie Freeman. But four of the first five Diamondbacks reached base against Kershaw on a double, walk, single and hit batter. Two runs scored.

Corbin Carroll led off the second inning against the three-time Cy Young Award winner and sent an 0-and-1 curveball from Kershaw down the line and into the right-field seats for a home run. The pitch was 67.4 mph, which registered as one of the slowest pitches of the future Hall of Famer’s career.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and head trainer Thomas Albert went to the mound as Carroll completed his trip around the bases. Kershaw left immediately with Albert.

Right-hander Joe Kelly appeared to be warming up in the Dodgers’ bullpen already as Kershaw pitched to Carroll, an indication there might have been discussion between innings of the issue bothering Kershaw, with the team announcing the toe injury not long after he exited.

This was Kershaw’s seventh start of the season following shoulder surgery last November, the first surgery of his career. He was 2-2 with a 3.72 ERA over the first six starts.

He joins a long list of injured Dodgers pitchers – most notably included rotation aces Tyler Glasnow (elbow) and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (shoulder).

More to come on this story.