The Los Angeles Dodgers received bad news on Saturday when Clayton Kershaw was placed on the 15-day disabled list for the first time in his career.
According to LA Times, Kershaw was scheduled to start the Dodgers' home opener Friday, but Hyun-Jin Ryu will start in his place. This will mark Ryu's third start in six games.
Kershaw injured his upper back and has an inflammation in it, but the Dodgers can activate him on April 7 as reported by CBS Sports.
Kershaw has been the Dodgers' pitching ace for a while now, and he has won two National League Cy Young Awards in 2011 and 2013. He dazzled fans with a 1.83 earned run average in 2013 with a 16-9 record and 232 strikeouts. He has struck out over 200 batters for four seasons in a row. He set a career-high for wins in 2011 with 21 while logging a 2.28 earned run average.
The Dodgers will look to take advantage of their pitching depth as they wait for Kershaw to heal.