Clayton Kershaw reached into his glove and rocked off the bullpen mound. His hand held merely air as he pantomimed his delivery at Wrigley Field.
There was no ball. There was no catcher. There was only a pitcher trying to return to routine during a Dodgers postseason that has wrenched his schedule from alignment.
After Kershaw completed his drills, he ambled behind the batting cage and crossed paths with teammate Kenley Jansen. The duo collected the final nine outs in Game 5 of the National League division series on Thursday — seven from Jansen, two from Kershaw — to set a date with the Cubs in the NL Championship Series.