Until last year, a World Series championship was the one glaring omission from the magnificent resume of Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw. Those dozen years of regular-season excellence followed by the team’s postseason failures had weighed on him in ways he didn’t understand until the burden was lifted.
Winning meant he no longer had to hear the “yeah, but . . .” that inevitably came up in discussions of his merits, no longer had to wonder how he’d feel or how he’d be judged if he never won a World Series ring. He felt lighter in spirit, and it showed.