LOS ANGELES — Clayton Kershaw has started 212 times at Dodger Stadium in the regular season and playoffs.

This one will be special.

Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker chose Kershaw to start for the National League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, the first at Dodger Stadium in 42 years.

Teammate Tony Gonsolin (11-0, 2.02 ERA) and Miami Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara (9-4, 1.76 ERA) have better statistics this season. But Kershaw was the sentimental favorite to start on his home turf. A 7-2 record and 2.13 ERA over 12 starts (75 strikeouts in 71-2/3 innings) added justification.

A three-time Cy Young Award winner and nine-time All-Star, one of the few boxes left unchecked on Kershaw’s Hall of Fame resume is an All-Star start. He has been passed over multiple times in the past, most notably in 2013 when he was on his way to the second of those Cy Young honors. NL manager Bruce Bochy chose then-New York Mets ace Matt Harvey to start the game at Citi Field.

Kershaw’s selection comes after an offseason of uncertainty during which his future was very much in doubt.

He ended last season with a flexor tendon injury that sidelined him for the postseason. Kershaw, 34, considered signing with his hometown Texas Rangers before returning to the Dodgers following the lockout on a one-year contract.

His full recovery from last year’s injury was evident when he pitched seven perfect innings (striking out 13) in his first start of the season. A back injury sidelined him for over a month – but he repeated the seven perfect innings in a start at Angel Stadium last week, losing the no-hitter in the eighth inning.

Kershaw, who passed Don Sutton in April for the team career strikeouts lead, will become the third Dodgers pitcher to start in the last seven All-Star Games, following Zack Greinke in 2015 at Cincinnati and Hyun Jin Ryu in 2019 at Cleveland. He will be the 13th pitcher to start in his home ballpark, the first since former teammate Max Scherzer in 2018 at Washington.

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Tampa Bay left-hander Shane McClanahan will be on the mound for the American League. McClanahan, a first-time All-Star, is 10-3 with a major league-leading 1.71 ERA and 147 strikeouts in 110-2/3 innings.

Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani will lead off for the AL as the designated hitter. Last year, he was the starting pitcher and led off as the DH in the AL’s 5-2 win at Denver.

Ohtani is followed in the AL batting order by New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge, Boston third baseman Rafael Devers, Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Yankees left fielder Giancarlo Stanton, Minnesota center fielder Byron Buxton, Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, Cleveland second baseman Andrés Giménez and Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk.

Atlanta right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. will lead off for the NL and be followed by Dodgers center fielder Mookie Betts, San Diego third baseman Manny Machado, St. Louis first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, Dodgers shortstop Trea Turner, Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras, Atlanta designated hitter William Contreras, San Francisco left fielder Joc Pederson and New York Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil.

More to come on this story.