The Los Angeles Dodgers tapping into their organizational depth at various points throughout the 2023 season included calling up Nick Robertson from Triple-A Oklahoma City in early June.
Robertson was in his fourth season as part of the Dodgers organization after being selected in the seventh round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of James Madison University.
At the time of joining the Dodgers, the right-hander had gone 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 37 strikeouts in 25.1 innings across 24 appearances for Oklahoma City. Robertson had held opponents to a .185 batting average during that span and converted all seven save opportunities.
Robertson made his MLB debut on June 7, striking out three batters over two perfect innings of a Dodgers’ loss to the Cincinnati Reds.
He combined with Jonny DeLuca to become the first set of Dodgers teammates to make their respective MLB debuts in the same game since Joc Pederson and Yimi García did so on September 1, 2014.
Robertson was optioned back to Oklahoma City and the end of June but got recalled one week later as the corresponding roster move to Daniel Hudson going on the 15-day injured list. The Dodgers again optioned Robertson to the Minors shortly after, and on July 25 he was included in a trade with Justin Hagenman to acquire Kiké Hernández from the Boston Red Sox.
Robertson went 0-1 with a 6.10 ERA and 2.03 WHIP in nine games for the Dodgers. He finished the 2023 season by appearing in nine more games (one start) with the Red Sox, yielding a 6.00 ERA and 1.50 WHIP.
Robertson’s statistics with the Dodgers were largely inflated due to allowing three earned runs in one of his appearances. He otherwise allowed one run or fewer in seven games.
That also applied to his time with the Red Sox, as the 25-year-old had six scoreless appearances and another with just one run allowed.
Robertson’s time in Boston wound up being relatively brief as he was included with Victor Santos in last month’s trade that sent them to the St. Louis Cardinals for Tyler O’Neill.
Nick Robertson 2023 highlight
Robertson had multiple stretches where he pitched well for OKC, but his biggest highlight in 2023 was reaching the Majors.
Although it came in a loss for the Dodgers, Robertson was appreciative of the opportunity to make his MLB debut in front of friends and family.
2024 outlook
Now a member of the Cardinals, Robertson figures to have a strong chance to establish himself as part of a Major League bullpen.
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