The Associated Press Los Angeles Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw pitches to a San Francisco Giants batter during the first inning of a game last Saturday.

LOS ANGELES — Three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw will retire at the end of this season, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced Thursday.

The 37-year-old left-hander who got his 3,000th strikeout in July will make his final regular-season start at Dodger Stadium on Friday night against the San Francisco Giants.

The 11-time All-Star and 2014 NL MVP is in his 18th major league season, all with the Dodgers, which ties him with Zack Wheat and Bill Russell for the most years in franchise history. Kershaw won World Series championships in 2020 and 2024.

“On behalf of the Dodgers, I congratulate Clayton on a fabulous career and thank him for the many moments he gave to Dodger fans and baseball fans everywhere, as well as for all of his profound charitable endeavors,” Mark Walter, team owner and chairman, said in a statement. “His is a truly legendary career, one that we know will lead to his induction in the Baseball Hall of Fame.”

Kershaw has a career record of 222-96 and 15 shutouts, which lead active major league players.

His 2.54 ERA is the lowest of any pitcher in the live-ball era since 1920, and his winning percentage tops all pitchers with at least 200 victories since 1900.

Kershaw’s decision was not unexpected. He has struggled with injuries in recent years and began this season on the IL while recovering from offseason surgery. He didn’t pitch until May, but proved to be a stalwart when the rotation was hard-hit by injuries.

In 2024, Kershaw was forced to end his season in August because of a toe injury that limited him to seven starts and just 30 innings with a 2-2 record and a 4.50 ERA, all career lows.

Tie for first

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Luis Castillo pitches six innings of three-hit ball, helping the Seattle Mariners beat the Kansas City Royals 2-0 on Thursday.

This win puts the Mariners back into a first-place tie with the Houston Astros in the AL West. Those two have a three-game series beginning Friday night in Houston.

Castillo outdueled Kansas City’s Stephen Kolek, who allows two runs, one earned, while pitching into the eighth inning. Jorge Polanco and J.P. Crawford drive in the runs for Seattle. Mariners manager Dan Wilson makes a successful challenge in the eighth inning, leading to Crawford’s run-scoring double.

Tigers sliding

DETROIT — The Detroit Tigers are struggling so much that a strong performance from Tarik Skubal was not enough to stop their late-season slide. Detroit’s ace gave up one run over six innings against the Cleveland Guardians and they took advantage of him being replaced in a 3-1 win on Thursday.

Skubal had tightness on his left side during his previous start. He allowed seven hits, struck out nine and walked two in a 102-pitch outing in his return. Cleveland has won seven straight to close within 3 1/2 games of the AL Central-leading Tigers.