Envisioning the ideal scenario for Dodgers to use Clayton Kershaw in World Series

Given the fact that he stayed in the bullpen for the entirety of the NLCS, it became pretty clear that the Dodgers don't have a plan for Clayton Kershaw, and that he might be on the roster as a formality more than anything.

If a rookie pitched the way Kershaw did in Game 3 of the NLDS, when he gave up five runs (four earned) in just two innings, he'd wouldn't have been on the NLCS roster. But Kershaw is Kershaw, and he's retiring at the end of this season, so no one's begrudging his rostered status.

Especially not when Kershaw was far from the only reliever to be ghosted in the NLCS. The Dodgers only used four bullpen arms behind one powerhouse performance after another from the rotation, and all of them performed better than Kershaw in the team's earlier postseason series.

If the starters keep doing what they've been doing, there'll be little incentive for the Dodgers to do anything differently with the bullpen in the World Series. It'll be Anthony Banda, Blake Treinen, Roki Sasaki and maybe Emmet Sheehan.

So when do the Dodgers use Kershaw? There's one glaring answer: they put him in to get the last three outs in a clinching game.

There's one obvious option for the Dodgers to give Clayton Kershaw a proper send off in the World Series

It sounds to be good to be true, but it's exactly what the Dodgers are setting him up for. Kershaw doesn't necessarily seem to love handouts, if his response to being named to the All-Star Game this year as a "Legend Pick" was any indication, but he certainly wouldn't refuse the call.

Just imagine it. Whoever is starting for the Dodgers goes six or maybe even seven innings. The Dodgers go to Treinen or Banda, then Sasaki, and then Kershaw in the ninth. A passing of the torch.

Of course, there are other scenarios if the rotation falters. Maybe someone gets pulled after four or five innings and Kershaw comes in for long relief. Maybe, if the series gets to a Game 5 or 6 and goes to a bullpen game, they put Kershaw on the mound as an opener.

But if LA has a comfortable enough lead in a clinching game, it would be shocking if they didn't put Kershaw in for the ninth, giving their ace of nearly two decades and future Hall of Famer the opportunity to close out the last World Series of his career.