On second thought -- make that third thought, actually, no, fourth thought -- Clayton Kershaw is shut down for the season

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The season is about to end and the Dodgers still look like they don’t know what they’re doing.

Clayton Kershaw, who was scheduled to make another start, then scratched, then re-inserted into the rotation, learned after the Dodgers’ 7-6 victory over the Colorado Rockies that he has, in fact, been shut down for the season.

John Ely will start in place of Kershaw on Friday.

“It is what it is,” Kershaw said.

Manager Joe Torre said he didn’t immediately name Ely the Friday starter when Hiroki Kuroda declined the opportunity to pitch another game because he thought he would have to use Ely on Wednesday.

Kuroda was probably relieved. The Japanese right-hander said that when he told Torre on Wednesday morning that reaching the 200-inning mark didn’t provide him enough motivation to make another start, he had no idea it would result in Kershaw being asked to pitch one more time.

-- Dylan Hernandez in Denver