Every once in a while, when looking at Clayton Kershaw’s statistics, there is something new that amazes.

This time, it is not his 2.06 ERA over the last six seasons, or his 1.99 ERA over his last 167 regular season starts (and 1,191⅓ innings, dating back to June 9, 2011). It isn’t the 15.63 strikeout-to-walk ratio Kershaw posted in 2016.

It’s this: Clayton Kershaw is closing in on the best WHIP in history.

Heading into 2017, Kershaw has pitched 1,760 innings and allowed 1,772 hits and walks.

His WHIP is 1.007 in his career. That seems insane, but maybe it shouldn’t.

Kershaw allowed fewer [walks plus hits] than innings in 2011, then again in 2013. And 2014. And 2015. Then in 2016 Kershaw posted a minuscule 0.725 WHIP in 21 starts, the lowest WHIP in major league history among pitchers with at least 100 innings.

All-time, Kershaw currently ranks fourth on the WHIP leaderboard, behind three Hall of Famers (well, two pitchers, plus a lock):

Addie Joss 0.9678 (2,327 IP, 2.252 walks/hits) Ed Walsh 0.9996 (2,964⅓ IP, 2.963 walks/hits) Mariano Rivera 1.0003 (1,283⅔ IP, 1.284 walks/hits) Clayton Kershaw 1.0068 (1,760 IP, 1.772 walks/hits)

This is minimum 1,000 innings.

If Kershaw in 2017 puts up his average year from 2014-2016 (193⅓ IP, 161 hits/walks), his career WHIP will be 0.9896, good for the No. 2 spot but still behind Joss. Two years of that production would improve Kershaw’s career WHIP to 0.9755, still behind Joss, who like Walsh pitched in the deadball era.

If Kershaw somehow replicates his ridiculous 2016 WHIP (0.725), but over 212 innings (his average of the last seven years), his career WHIP would move to 0.9767. Two such years moves it to 0.9524.

Should Kershaw average 212 innings over 2017-2018, he would need to allow 341 hits/walks (an 0.804 WHIP) to pass Joss for the No. 1 spot.

Turns out Joss is a tough man to beat.

With that No. 1 spot comes the special shading notification on Baseball-Reference. Here is the page for Addie Joss. Note the career WHIP.

Kershaw has italics on several of his career categories (winning percentage, ERA, shutouts, ERA+, FIP, WHIP, hits/9 and HR/9), which denotes him as the active leader.

But we are talking all-time here.

Kershaw at the very least could move into the No. 2 spot in all-time WHIP very soon in 2017. He currently has 12 more walks/hits than innings. In 2016, it took him six starts to have 13 fewer hits/walks than innings.

It might be late April, or perhaps more likely in early May. But at some point this season, Kershaw will have a career WHIP under 1, and that’s just absurd to say out loud.

And if you are super patient, Kenley Jansen is currently sitting on a 0.893 WHIP, a mere 591 innings from reaching 1,000. Fun.