Clayton Kershaw's shot on the Astros should motivate the Dodgers to win the 2024 World Series

Clayton Kershaw unfortunately won't be able to help his teammates on the field during the Los Angeles Dodgers' 2024 postseason, but as a man with plenty of October experience, he can remain a motivator even when he's on the sidelines.

A toe injury ended Kershaw's season, but he insists he will play again in 2025. It's unclear if that will be the case with the Dodgers, but all that matters is that he's here now.

Although Kershaw hasn't been himself in recent seasons, he's still a Dodgers legend and everything he says and does will have significant significance. Therefore, fans believe that his recent comments were used strategically to motivate his team and the fan base.

Much of the conversation in recent days has focused on Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts, who have sparked the Dodgers' offense en route to a 3-2 NLCS lead against the New York Mets, with the last two games in LA take place.

Kershaw was asked about Ohtani and Betts as a 1-2 punching presence, and the future Hall of Famer tried to consider whether he was facing a comparable duo. He thought about it for a moment and realized he had done it… but then he dismissed its effect. Have the 2017 Houston Astros ever come up so naturally in conversation?

Clayton Kershaw motivates Dodgers players and fans with critical Astros comments

This particularly bothers Astros fans, especially because they feel particularly childish after being eliminated in the Wild Card round by a red-hot and inexperienced Detroit Tigers team. This year there were no bins and the result was the worst since 2016! Look at this.

There's no doubt that Kershaw still has a certain mindset heading into this World Series. The 2017 Dodgers came out on top, taking Houston to the brink in Game 7 but coming up short. It was later revealed that the Astros had orchestrated an illegal sign-stealing scandal that definitely jeopardized the 2017 campaign and possibly the 2018 and 2019 seasons as well.

Kershaw, Kiké Hernandez, Walker Buehler, Chris Taylor and Austin Barnes are still on this roster and would certainly like to avenge this heartbreaking loss with a full-season World Series in 2024. The Dodgers have defied the odds this year despite being decimated by injuries and need every last push they can get as they are just one game away from the Fall Classic and await a tough AL matchup.

Kershaw is never one to cause trouble, but something tells us he knew what he was doing here. The more the Dodgers can use this “edge” to further their postseason run, the better. And a few Astros tears along the way didn't hurt anyone.