With sports biographies, it's a very thin line for me between the book being a straight hagiography and being compelling. Unfortunately, this book ended up on the hagiography side for me. Don't get me wrong; I love Andy McCullough's writing. While this one isn't to my taste, I'll be sure to check out what he writes in the future.

Clayton Kershaw, as brilliant a pitcher as he is, isn't exactly a magnetic personality. Yet this definitive biography on him is a very enjoyable read.

Oooh, that was a great read. I love when good journalists write good books.

And what a kind man is A.J. Ellis.

This longtime Dodgers fan thanks the kind folk at NetGalley for a chance to read an ARC of this most excellent read.

Clayton Kershaw has been one of the best pitchers in major league baseball since his debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008. By 2010, he was moving into elite status, eventually earning three Cy Young awards and also was the National League MVP in 2014. As this review is written, he is still on the active list for the Dodgers but has not pitched in a game in 2024. While his status as an active player may be in doubt, there is no doubt he has had an interesting baseball career and life, both of which are told in this excellent book by Andy McCullough.

The book is a good balance of Kershaw’s baseball life and his personal life. He was a child of divorced parents and grew up without the financial security of many of his friends. He and his mother did the best they could and in Clayton’s case, that included being the best baseball player he could be. He was very focused on this, believing that a scholarship opportunity through baseball was the only way he could afford to go to college. That plan got sidetracked when the Dodgers made him a first-round draft choice in 2006 and paid him a very good signing bonus.

This is where he developed his work ethic and the five day routine from which he never wavered during baseball season, all the way up to the Dodgers and through most of his career. Injuries, mainly to his back, forced him to deviate from this later in his career, but the writing by McCullough about Kershaw’s routines is excellent and lets the reader know just how focused Kershaw can be, especially on the days he pitches.

From this description, one would think Kershaw is intense without much of a personality, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This was what really stood out to me while reading this. Yes, there is plenty about his baseball career and the questions about his postseason struggles are addressed. However, when he is not pitching and either spending time with his family or even with teammates in the clubhouse or away from the ballpark, Kershaw comes across as a friendly funny guy and a man who puts his family first. There are many passages in which his wife Ellen describes Clayton in such glowing terms. While that may be expected, this is backed up by so many others in which Kershaw has had interactions.

When writing about baseball on the field, McCullough gives excellent accounts of this part of Kershaw as well. Whether describing Kershaw’s coaches and advisors working on developing his pitching arsenal, the Dodgers’ front office activities (including the disastrous time of Frank and Jamie McCourt’s ownership) or the joy Kershaw felt when the Dodgers finally won a World Series in 2020, this aspect of the book is just as good. I particularly enjoyed the section when Kershaw learned his unorthodox delivery method in three steps.

Whether you are a Dodgers fan, a baseball fan, or just want to learn about one of the best pitchers in baseball the last 15 years, this book is for you.

I wish to thank the publisher for providing a review copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

Clayton Kershaw may truly be the last of his kind - a starter who plans on going deep into games and getting 200 innings in a year. That's no fault of his or the other starting pitchers in MLB. Rather, it's a reflection on how the game has changed since Kershaw intially came up in 2008. However, I was actually interested in something that seemed to be unspoken throughout the book - Kershaw as the last of his kind as an Ace (capital A intended).

In middle school and high school, I purchased each new Baseball Prospectus. One of the years they were talking about Roy Halladay and included this at the start of his player comment:

"Ah, the Great One, how sweet it is. There are few things tastier than an ace starter who knows it and acts like it. Not that he's Charles Barkley, but you're probably as tired of the GMC stock speech as anyone ('I'd like to thank God, Mom, and my Country. No, Rory, I don't often cry. Really, I don't.') "

It feels like that could also describe Kershaw. There were times in this book in which I was truly shocked at the level of openness about Kershaw and his personality. I went in expecting to read a hagiography and came out with what feels like a fairly open and honest picture of who Kershaw is. At times, he read like Michael Jordan, someone who could be an asshole because he wanted to win and he wanted to win his own way. Other times, Kershaw read like what you expect a baseball player to be - a goofy child in an adult's body. The number of times people described Kershaw as stubborn and resistant to change, or difficult on days he pitches, or someone who can be stand-offish became commonplace after awhile, which I consider a good thing. It helped to develop the narrative of Kershaw's struggles and efforts to maintain his level of greatness and why it was such a big deal when he went to Driveline.

The book itself was extremely readable. McCullough had the ability to take lots of input (over 200 interviews) and utilize the information without making it seem like he was just listing facts. As a former beat writer, I was concerned about McCullough's ability to maintain a decent pace and fill an entire book, as I've seen other beat writers struggle with that skill. While there were moments of repetition, it never felt as though the book had filler in it or that McCullough was trying to get a page count. I think his level of access, along with the honestly he was able to elicit in his interviews, allowed the story to feel like it should be this long. For a player who hasn't retired yet, and is still only in his mid-to-late thirties, I didn't expect there to be this much info to share.

Overall, a very enjoyable book for any baseball fan, especially those who came of age witnessing Kershaw's greatness.

Many baseball fans of a certain age rue what has befallen their favorite game. “They don’t make ’em like they used to” is a familiar phrase when comparing the current generation of players to their predecessors. The standards for who should be counted among the all-time greats has dropped as the sport has changed in recent years. It’s doubtful that we’ll see another 300-game winner or 3,000 strikeouts. Nowadays pitchers get high marks if they can complete six innings and give up three runs or fewer, known as a “quality start.” You can practically hear the snickers from old-timers who felt shame if they couldn’t complete their assignments.

Clayton Kershaw is perhaps one of the few contemporary athletes who might be welcome by his pitching forebears. He actually may be, as the title claims, THE LAST OF HIS KIND (although props must be paid to fellow hurlers Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer).

The “Burden” of the subtitle began at an early age. The product of a broken home, a teenaged Kershaw felt the obligation to help his mother as much as possible. Times were difficult financially growing up in Highland Park, Texas, where they had to rely on loans from family and friends to make ends meet. As Kershaw continued to improve as a high school pitcher, scouts from the pro ranks began to take notice. Each successive year brought more scrutiny and more pressure to excel in order to improve his chances of a high draft selection and, with it, a sizeable signing bonus. Pitchers are even more of a risk: Many are not fully developed physically at that age, which is why a number of teams don’t even consider them as a draft option. But Kershaw’s dogged insistence on excelling paid off: He was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers as the sixth overall pick in 2006 and received a bonus of $2.3 million.

This was not enough to make Kershaw feel satisfied. He knew such high accolades do not guarantee success. The road to the major leagues is full of stories about unmet expectations. Kershaw was determined not to become one of those statistics. He continued to improve and spent less than three years in the minors, reaching LA before his 21st birthday, a goal he had set for himself when he signed.

Like many superstars, Kershaw displayed an intensity that could be construed as selfishness. But dozens of coaches, teammates and opponents interviewed for this book debunk that notion and portray him as a leader and demanding presence, of both himself and others. Buoyed by his faith and a loving family --- he married his high school sweetheart, and his in-laws considered him their son long before they were wed --- Kershaw was able to keep an even keel, except perhaps on the days he pitched.

Since then, Kershaw has won more than 200 games, three Cy Young Awards --- indicative of the best pitcher in the league --- and a Most Valuable Player Award. He also received the Roberto Clemente Award in 2012, given to the player “who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement.” (He was nominated again in 2014).

To quote a noted philosopher, “with great power comes great responsibility.” Despite all his regular season success and his status as a future Hall of Famer, Kershaw fell woefully short when it came to the postseason, a time when a player with his reputation is expected to step up and lead his team. The Dodgers have appeared in the playoffs 12 times since his debut in 2008, but their only world championship came in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. These perceived failures always nagged at Kershaw, who demanded the best of himself and suffered from self-doubt when he didn’t live up to those expectations.

A lefthander, Kershaw is often compared to Sandy Koufax, another Dodgers legend, who saw his career cut short by injury. And therein lies another burden. Kershaw was relatively lucky for many years, managing one of the heavier workloads as the game has transitioned. It understandably has taken a toll, and Kershaw, now 36, has become more fragile, which is always difficult for a player of his caliber to accept. (As of this writing, he is on the injured list, working back from off-season shoulder surgery; it is hoped he can return around the middle of July.)

Andy McCullough, an award-winning writer now plying his trade at The Athletic, allows readers to peer into the microscope in a way rarely --- if ever --- seen in modern sports biographies. Much of that has to do with the access he enjoyed to his subject and many family members, friends, teammates, coaches and others in Kershaw’s world. A fair amount of insight into his philosophy rests with his faith, which McCullough writes about in a way that is inclusive but not preachy or potentially off-putting. Kershaw recognizes that as hard as he tries, he’s fallible, subject to the same missteps and insecurities as the rest of us.

Reviewed by Ron Kaplan (www.RonKaplansBaseballBookshelf.com) on June 15, 2024

As a big fan of the yankees and baseball in general, I love all books that delve into what it takes to make it the big leagues. It was very interesting to read about Kershaw's motivations from his upbringing to his faith -- I don't know if those were known prior as I didn't follow his career or the dodgers too closely. I'd recommend to any baseball wonks.

I have never been a fan of biographies of athletes still in the midst of their careers, but something drew me to Andy McCullough’s
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘥: 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘒𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴. Obviously, a biography (authorized) of Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, of whom I’ve never been a big fan.

So we have a type of book I don’t like about a player I don’t really like. Of course, I loved it.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗱:
- Depth. Kershaw is generally pretty private but this book goes deep into the weeds with him. It’s surprising to learn that he’s currently not happy to be on the Dodgers and wants to be on the Rangers. That’s something that seems like it would never come out until years later. Kershaw has also courted a lot of controversy in the past couple of years and we get more of his perspective and learn that a lot of things come from him being defensive due to being uncertain about himself.
- Interview subjects. McCullough has dug up so many people from Kershaw’s past and present life that you seem to get a full picture on how he got to where he is and why he is the person he is.
- Access. The book takes you behind the scenes for all of the little bits of baseball you never really think of. What does a rookie do in Spring Training? Where do they live? What do they eat? What do they pack? Who keeps tabs on them?
- Writing. Probably the most important part. There are a lot of bits of Kershaw’s life that it would be very easy to express a strong opinion about, but McCullough does not. He writes clearly, engagingly and maintains a neutral point of view.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
- We’re not done. This is not McCullough’s fault, but Kershaw’s career isn’t done. I’m sure he when he retires there will be an epilogue added but there’s not quite an ending point.
- We’re not done II. Due to when the book was finished and published, the book ends (not a spoiler because this is real life) with Kershaw not under contract wanting to sign with the Rangers. Kershaw resigned with the Dodgers in February which makes that a little awkward.

𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁:
Not my usual cup of tea and not one of my favorite players, it was still a wonderful book and I recommend if you’re looking for a newer baseball biography.

Winning the Big One

As a life-long Dodger fan, I was set to devour this book. Clayton Kershaw is one of the greatest pitchers ever to put on the uniform, a sure bet first round hall of famer. His career has been dedicated to one organization, and he and his wife have been pillars of the community. Their charitable work has been inspiring, including the establishment of an orphanage in Zambia. The perfect story!

Well… maybe not perfect.

Clayton has won the Cy Young award as baseball’s best pitcher an incredible three times. He won the National League MVP award in 2014, a rare accomplishment for a pitcher. He has been the dominant stopper of his era… during the regular season. Slowly but surely his reputation began tarnishing during the post-season playoffs. ‘Wonderful, but he can’t win the big one.’ Whether overworked or pitching on short rest, things fell apart and the Dodgers, superior during the season, were unable to grab the World Series trophy behind their ace. The one time they did win, in 2020, has been devalued by many as the Covid series, with an unusual atmosphere adjusted because of the playing restrictions on crowds, teams, and locations.

Sportswriter Andy McCullough does provide glimpses of Kershaw we have not seen before. There is a detailed background of the financial struggles he and his mother endured in his youth, an early factor motivating him to succeed. His intensity, particularly on game day, is well known, and although it is pointed out he was much more easy-going on days he was not starting; a grumpiness and testiness seem to be asserting itself along with struggles to overcome injuries and the aging process. I was surprised to see him say he has no interest in instructing or tutoring the young pitchers coming up… “This might be, like, harsh, but I really don’t have any interest in helping people get better,” he said. “This is probably selfish… but I don’t, like, care.”

Kershaw’s career is winding down (being the old man of 36), but it is not over yet. His last pitched game, in the 2023 National League Division Series, was the worst performance ever, allowing six runs and recording only one out. In the off season he had elbow surgery before signing a $10 million contract for 2024. At the time of this book’s publication, he is still on the injured list, hoping to make another comeback by mid-season. One more chance to grab the brass ring.

“The Last of His Kind: Clayton Kershaw and the Burden of Greatness” gives us rare glimpses behind the scenes. We see how Kershaw felt about being robbed by the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal in 2017. A strained relationship with manager Dave Roberts is touched upon and we see a mutual admiration through the years with Sandy Koufax. An enjoyable portrait of a man driven to achieve greatness and unwilling to accept anything less.

Thank you to Hachette Books NetGalley for providing an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The minute I found out there was a new book coming out about Clayton Kershaw, my favorite Dodgers pitcher and my absolute favorite baseball player, I knew I had to get a copy. If you know me, you know I bleed blue. Kershaw has been the face of the Dodgers franchise for years and deservedly so. Not only is he one of the greatest pitchers of our generation, but he’s also an amazing human being.

As much as I love Kershaw, I really didn’t know too much about his childhood except that he was very close to his mom. This book opened my eyes about his youth and adulthood and the burdens he carried with him. Andy McCullough showed me the real Kersh and all I can say is I adore Kersh even more. I loved hearing teammates and other players’ thoughts on the GOAT. He really sets an example in the world of baseball and the community with all the things he does with his charity, Kershaw’s challenge.

I know the day is nearing when Kersh will retire and I won’t be able to watch him throw another pitch. That will be a sad day for not only me, but for baseball. However, I hope he eventually comes back to be a pitching coach or in some form of capacity with the Dodgers.

Thank you to Hachett for my e-arc in exchange for an honest review. I’m gonna need this one in hardcover for my Kershaw collection.

Thank you to NetGalley for ebook ARC of this book. Anyone who knows me I’m a die hard Dodger fan. Clayton Kershaw is the reason why I fell in love with the Dodgers in the summer of 2009. In 2009, I was sitting on the couch taking care of my Grandpa licking some wounds of my own when my Grandpa asked to watch his Dodgers. I was anti sports at the time but that afternoon I fell in love with baseball and my Dodgers. Clayton Kershaw and I should nothing in common beyond a love of this child’s game as Vin Scully called it. But reading about Kershaw’s burdens made me understand his failures in the postseason. The great burden he carried with him through childhood and adulthood made me understand him. I could relate to the anxiety and the need for routine as I myself have my own routine.

This book will give you the insight into one of the greatest Dodgers pitchers ever to put on Dodger blue.

What a fantastic read!!! Andy McCullough did such an awesome job of capturing Clayton Kershaw’s greatness while still reminding the readers that Clayton is a human just like the rest of us.

This book was an introspective look at the life and baseball career of Clayton Kershaw. From his youth baseball days in high school, to playing for Team USA’s Junior National Team, all the way through his impressive career with the LA Dodgers.

A couple things that I really enjoyed about this book are how it dove into Clayton’s early life as a teenager to see what really motivated him to be wired the way he is. The other thing I enjoyed was the fact that they spoke about his personal life with his family and how his faith played a role in his career.

I think this would be a fantastic book for baseball and non-sports fan alike. It was a quick read that paced really well and didn’t feel drawn out. Special thanks to Hachette Book Group and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest and fair review. I hope to pick up a physical copy of this book on release day May 7th, 2024

First things first I have followed Andy and his work with writing about the dodgers for years. When I heard he would be writing a book about Clayton Kershaw I was beyond excited to read it. To say it exceed my expectations wouldn’t even cover how much I loved it. I came away learning about the player and the man that Clayton is and will always be. A strong, dependable, one of a kind pitcher who is also an amazing husband to Ellen and father to Cali, Charley, Cooper and Chance. If you’re a Dodger fan or a baseball fan in general this book is for you.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC to this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a lifelong Dodgers fan, I have followed Clayton Kershaw's career closely. Although I certainly recognize his immense talent, this book really humanized this otherworldly talent. I was struck by how his faith in God and the support of his wife has been able to get him through some heartbreaks which would have taken down most. I was a Clayton Kershaw fan before but now I am a fan of his as a man. This is a great book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 5-stars.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me an Advanced Reader Copy of this book - so awesome as a baseball fan!

As a baseball fan, it’s easy to forget that baseball players are also human beings. This book tells the human story of Clayton Kershaw, one of the greatest pitchers of our generation, described by a former teammate as “as nice a guy as there is, but on that fifth day, (pitching day) he is an animal.”

This comes to no surprise to me because you don’t get as good as someone like Kershaw on accident. What did come to a surprise to me though, was that what drove Kershaw to be routine oriented was anxiety that stemmed from his childhood of his parents struggling with both money and time and him having to be responsible for himself from a young age after his parents divorced. Because things around him were a bit unstable, he was determined to keep what he could under his control, which is something I could relate to on a personal level.

I’ve heard before that a lot of professional athletes are very routine oriented and for Kershaw, it seems like that's true to the extreme. It made me smile to learn that Kershaw was so set in his routine until his children were born and then they became his routine that nothing could distract him from.

Illustrated with stories of how friends, teammates, and even Samuel L Jackson had to alter their own approach for Kershaw, I enjoy the more personal stories shared in this book. Many times, I’ve heard thee saying, “if you don’t come from a good family, make sure a great family comes from you” and it seems like that is exactly what Kershaw succeeded in accomplishing.

I'm a Yankees fan, but a baseball fan first and Clayton Kershaw will always be regarded as one of the best to play both from our generation and overall. It's clear he'll make it to the Hall of Fame, it's clear he'll succeed in anything he wants out of life. From finding love and keeping it since the age of 14, having a gift and love for baseball and being regarded as a loving and dedicated father by his wife, Ellen, Kershaw has everything a person could want out of life.

Go Dodgers! As a long time fan, I LOVED reading about the GOAT of baseball. What a great read about Kershaw and how he got to be the GOAT he is with the Dodgers. If I didn’t love him enough before, I will forever be a fan after this book. 10/10 for any Dodger Fan!

Clayton Kershaw is one of the greatest pitchers of this generation, if not all time. Andy McCullough’s The Last of His Kind takes us through Clayton’s journey from poor kid in Texas to present day. Kershaw is a truly a unique athlete with a number of struggles to overcome in order to make his dreams come true. It’s hard not to take inspiration from reading this book as you watch Kershaw overcome a poor childhood and hear about the amount of work he puts in to be exceptional at his craft.

Andy McCullough did a great job getting a notoriously quiet Kershaw to open up about his life and MLB career. He also did a lot of legwork interviewing over 250 people to get not only Kershaw‘s take on his story, but many others who were involved along the way. I really enjoyed AJ Ellis.’, Kershaw’s longtime catcher, prospective on things that occurred. I also found the section after the 2020 World Series victory one of the best parts of the book. Mr. McCullough went to a number of the people he interviewed and asked them their feelings after watching or learning that Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers had won the World Series after so many failures in the playoffs. You could truly hear the amount of pleasure people had knowing that Kershaw had finally reached the pinnacle of team success.

Before reading this book, I typically cheered against Kershaw and the Dodgers, as they were one of the giants in the game. I can say after reading this book, while I might not always cheer for the Dodgers, I will always be cheering for Kershaw. Whether you a baseball fan or not, This book is worth your time. It tells the story of a person came a number of obstacles to be one of the most successful people of all time at his or her occupation. Thank you to Andy McCullough, NetGalley, and Hachette Books for a free advanced copy for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Books for the advanced digital copy. I'm going to keep this short and simple. This book easily slides into my top 5 baseball books of all-time. What an absolute classic from Andy McCullough. I must admit, I am a huge fan of Andy's work, and this did not disappoint. The book is well written, it flows, and it has tremendous amounts of detail. All the Kershaw stories are fantastic and gives an insight into not only how he operates but how others view him as well. I highly, highly recommend reading this as soon as it is released. 4.7/5.0

This was a great book telling the life of a great person. It was very inspiring and I would highly recommend this book to everyone!

When you hear Kershaw, you hear the Los Angeles Dodgers. As a Dodgers' fan, it warms my heart. As a baseball fan, it always made me wonder if this decision to stay with one team was definite or something battled. This book was the insight I craved, despite not liking the answer too much.

Throughout my journey of reading, Kershaw became less of a baseball legend, and more of a human. This sounds silly out loud, but it's hard to connect the two when you grow up watching 4-6 games a week in a major stadium or in front of a television screen. I appreciate McCullough's dedication to giving us the honest and real version of Kershaw and his accomplishments along with his failures. This is what I held the most nerves over when approved for the copy, but I truly believe that's what sets this book a part from so many others.

Baseball is both beautiful in its triumphs and ugly in its setbacks, but this is what allows fans to hold so much dedication to the sport. Seeing we're not so different from Kershaw in this thought process allowed for even more of a connection than we get from simply watching. McCullough thoroughly portrayed this feeling in an impressive and crucial manner through his writing style and voice. Sometimes it even felt like I was watching the games all over again with my heart beat above 100 and my ears ringing of excitement.

Furthermore, the inclusion of so many other names was riveting and kept the story alive. Of course Clayton Kershaw reigns the purpose of this book, but having quotes from past and present teammates, family members, and fans alike made the writing that much more significant. It was a wonderful sentiment to have background from all perspectives, and I am happy to have this book's details in my arsenal of fun facts.

I will be purchasing a physical copy when released. Hopefully (and with major amounts of luck) to be signed at a spring training event.