Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Scott Kazmir has endured plenty throughout his Major League career, which included being out of the league completely in 2012.
He worked his way back and eventually wound up signing a three-year, $48 million contract with the Dodgers before the 2016 season. The first year of that deal didn’t exactly go as planned.
Kazmir went 10-6 with a 4.56 ERA, 4.48 FIP and 1.36 WHIP in 26 starts. He dealt with some health issues towards the end of the year, and those carried into Spring Training in 2017 as his velocity was significantly lower than it was when he was healthy.
Kazmir was never able to get healthy in 2017, as he pitched in four Minor League games but did not make an appearance at the big league level. He has since been traded to the Atlanta Braves in a salary dump that saw the Dodgers acquired Matt Kemp.
Now attempting to make a return with the Braves, Kazmir recently discussed how tough the 2017 season was as he was unable to contribute and could only watch as teammates had success without him, via David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
“The toughest part was not being able to contribute, not being able to be with my teammates,” Kazmir said. “Especially with the season that was going on, how much success they were having, not being able to be a part of it, that was the hardest thing.”
The belief is Kazmir and Brandon McCarthy may earn spots in the Braves rotation, should they manage to remain healthy. That could be particularly key for the southpaw, as he’s in the final year of his contract.
That could provide additional incentive for Kazmir, though his work ethic was not in question with the Dodgers last season. He simply could not overcome hip/back trouble that prevented his velocity and command being up to the standard commanded with pitching in the Majors.
Kazmir threw a scoreless inning in his spring debut, but hit a batter and issued two walks. He allowed two hits and struck out a batter in two scoreless innings on Friday.
