DENVER -- It might have been the most important two innings of the season when?Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw completed a simulated outing Tuesday at Dodger Stadium. It was his first time facing hitters in 45 days.Kershaw, who has been out since June 26 because of a back injury, is trying to get back to the Dodgers at some point in September, and Tuesdays outing was a major part of the process.It was a great step in his progression, said team president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, who is with the club in Colorado. He felt great after, which is obviously everything he cared about. As we knew he would do, he said he was not as sharp as he wanted to be, but hes always going to say that. The most important thing is that he felt great, and we will assess tomorrow what the next steps are.Manager Dave Roberts suggested that in one scenario, Kershaw could be back with the Dodgers on the next homestand and could pitch a four-inning outing as he builds up his length. It seems more likely, though, that a minor league rehab outing would be next.My guess is that Kersh will want to pitch in a major league game tomorrow, Friedman said. With the time that hes missed, my guess is that the next step will be a minor league assignment. I think it will take a little bit of time to build him up in a way for him to be strong through September and hopefully October as well.Kershaw was hurtling toward a fourth Cy Young Award -- and a possible National League MVP award -- when his back sabotaged him after a start at Pittsburgh. He was diagnosed with a mild disk herniation at the time. He went through the initial rehab process, and on July 16, he tried to throw a simulated game, similar to Tuesdays, but had a setback that forced him to start his rehab all over again.The Dodgers are trying to be careful with Kershaws rehab process, knowing their staff ace will push himself as hard as he can to return. Friedman said Kershaw has a lot of input in the process.But you have to also balance that with the fact that hes as competitive a person as I have ever been around, and he wants to get out here and help this team in the worst way, Friedman said. Well have to balance the medical opinion with how he is doing and feeling and getting him back as soon as we can, but in the most responsible way possible.Kershaw was 11-2 after his first 16 starts and had a 1.79 ERA. Most incredible of all, he had 145 strikeouts and just nine walks in 121 innings and was pitching at a level beyond what he had shown before.?What he will be like when he returns remains to be seen. When he returns is also up in the air. Friedman was asked if its possible that Kershaw could have a second minor league start, in a playoff game, before he comes back.I dont know, Friedman said. All of this is speculative. We will see how hes doing tomorrow. But the most important thing is that he got through today feeling really good. Well kind of lay out the next steps tomorrow. Packers Jerseys China . Olli Jokinen, Mark Scheifele, and Bryan Little each had a goal and an assist as Winnipeg won 5-2, handing Calgary its record-setting seventh consecutive loss on home ice. Fake Packers Jerseys . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. https://www.packersjerseysale.com/ . Andreas Johnson had a goal and two assists while Jacob de la Rose also scored for Sweden (2-0-0). Esa Lindell and Rasmus Ristolainen replied for Finland (1-1-0) Lindell opened the scoring for Finland just 41 seconds into the game, but the hosts quickly regained their composure and tied the score less than four minutes later on Wennbergs first of the game. Custom Green Bay Packers Jerseys .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Stitched Packers Jerseys . Only three players drafted by NHL clubs were included on the Czech selection camp roster on Wednesday. Those players were Dallas Stars 2012 first-rounder Radek Faksa, Winnipeg Jets 2013 fourth-rounder Jan Kostalek and Phoenix Coyotes 2012 seventh-rounder Marek Langhamer.Jamie Vardy hopes his late start to professional football will allow him to extend his playing career at the highest level. The Leicester forward, who has risen from the non-league game to become a Premier League winner, was 25 years old when he made his Football League debut.Pace is one of his key attributes but Vardy, who turns 30 in January, insists hes not losing his speed as the big birthday approaches. Six months half price Upgrade to Sky Sports to watch Man Utd v Arsenal on Saturday and get the first six months half price My legs feel great and people say the older you get your pace goes, but its not affecting that side of things as of yet, Vardy told Soccer Saturday. Hopefully because I came into the game later, it means Ive got longer to go.Leicester travel to Watford in the Premier League on Saturday, three years on from their dramatic Championship play-off semi-final defeat at Vicarage Road.Vardy was on the bench for the Foxes that day, alongside future England team-mates Danny Drinkwater and Harry Kane, on loan at the King Power from Tottenham.All three have since gone on to play Champions League football, with one particular picture from that game serving as a reminder of how far each player has come. Harry Kane [left] sits next to Jamie Vardy, with Danny Drinkwater further along the bench It just shows that anything is possible, Vardy said of the image. I know full well from Drinks [Drinkwater] and H [Kane] that a lot of hard work has been put into it from every single one of us.Its not like it has just come to us overnight, we have had to put the graft in. Weve had a few chats about it, especially when seeing H on England duty. To be fair, we have a laugh about it.I always pinch myself. Its not just what has happened over the last year, it is what has happened through my whole career and where Ive got to. Its good to keep me grounded.Its good when you do get noticed, it means you are doing well so I think I just need to keep that going and if I can go on another run now and get anywhere near to the [Premier League goalscoring] record, that would be great. Claudio Ranieri believes Vardys goal for England against Spain is good news for Leicester City Vardy and Leicester have struggled to live up to last seasons remarkable title triumph, with the Foxes 14th in the table and Vardy stuck on two league goals.ddddddddddddIts been a different story in the Champions League, where Claudio Ranieris side are on the cusp of clinching qualification to the knock-out round.Asked if Leicester have approached the two competitions differently, Vardy said: I cant put anything on to that, all I know is that in the Champions League we have been playing exactly as we know we can and for some reason its not been there in the league.Its just time to make sure we are constantly doing it and putting the performances in.I know they [Champions League team] wont have scouted us as much as our league opponents so it could be down to that. Watch highlights from Leicesters most recent Premier League match And the Leicester striker says his side are not in the Champions League just to make up the numbers, insisting they believe they have what it takes to go all the way.You cant just enter a competition and think youve got no chance, he added. You will just lose every game.As the performances have shown in the first four games, we are there to put performances in and get the points, and that is what we have been doing.Watch the full interview with Jamie Vardy on Soccer Saturday, from 12pm on Sky Sports News HQUpgrade to Sky Sports now to watch Man Utd v Arsenal this Saturday and get the first six months half price! Also See: Ranieri expecting new Vardy Mersons predictions Method to Mahrez magic Premier League questions ' ' '