After being acquired from the Cincinnati Reds at the non-waiver trade deadline in 2017, Tony Cingrani went on to have a productive second half of the season with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was among the players later tendered a contract and re-signed, avoiding arbitration.
Cingrani’s return meant Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had another trusted option in his bullpen who could face right- and left-handed batters. But his 2018 campaign got off to an injury-filled start and ended in similar fashion.
Cingrani suffered from ‘dead arm’ in an April appearance against the San Francisco Giants, and put him on the 10-day disabled list less than two weeks later due to left shoulder inflammation.
Up to that point he’d gone 0-2 in 18 games and pitched to a 5.79 ERA while allowing opponents to bat .250/.311/.429. Cingrani returned after the minimum stay on the DL and after struggling in his first game, put together quality appearances.
However, Cingrani was back on the disabled list (shoulder strain) come early June and one day after he was removed from a game due to what was an unspecified shoulder injury at the time. More clarification came when the 29-year-old was diagnosed with a rotator cuff strain.
Cingrani hit snags in his recovery and was transferred to the 60-day disabled list in August. He did not return until the middle of September and only appeared in two games prior to the regular season winding to a close.
Cingrani finished the year with a 4.76 ERA, 2.32 FIP, 1.10 WHIP, six walks and 36 strikeouts over 22.2 innings pitched. Cingrani’s 30 games were his fewest since the 2014 season.
If there was any doubting his importance or value to the Dodgers, Roberts on multiple occasions pointed to Cingrani’s absence as being key because it stripped the club of an option to retire batters of either handedness.
2018 Highlight
While injury interrupted the stretch, Cingrani produced an 8.1 scoreless innings streak over 11 games, spanning from May to September. Opponents batted .143/.200/.143 off Cingrani during that time.
2019 Outlook
Cingrani is again among the Dodgers who are eligible for salary arbitration. He presumably will be tendered a contract and begin negotiations to once more avoid arbitration.
