Dodgers Need to End the Scott Kazmir Experiment

It is fair to say that Scott Kazmir’s first season as a part of the Los Angeles Dodgers was a large disappointment. Any hopes of a resurgence should be put to rest because his decline will only continue.

Many raised their eyebrows when the Dodgers signed the then-soon-to-be 32-year-old Scott Kazmir to a 3-year $48 million contract last winter, and rightfully so. As talented as he was, he could not always be trusted because he had been an injury risk his whole career. In his 12 years of MLB service, he has just one season of 200+ IP and only four seasons where he has made at least 30 starts.

He’s had an up-and-down career that has seen him compile a 4.01 ERA and 1.35 WHIP. After being traded to the Houston Astros right before the 2015 trade deadline, he went on to put up a 4.17 ERA and 1.39 WHIP in 13 starts. This past season he threw 136.1 innings while posting an ERA of 4.56 and WHIP of 1.36. Those aren’t numbers that exactly scream out “$16 million a year.”

Now there are reports that his velocity has dropped tremendously and it is already a little after mid-March. At this point in time, he should be somewhat close to getting into form, not just starting that journey (or stagnating). Topping out a fastball at around 83-84 mph is definitely concerning because it is almost impossible to be effective throwing that soft.

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Throw in the fact that his average fastball velocity was 91.4 mph in 2016 and he still struggled, it’s fair to be worried about Kazmir’s ability. He just turned 33 and has been a historically injured pitcher so do not count on his velocity increasing.

Because of all this, I believe it is time for the Los Angeles Dodgers to cut bait with Scott Kazmir just after one season. His best years are behind him and he will take up a roster spot of someone much younger and more deserving such as a Ross Stripling, Trevor Oaks, or Brock Stewart. The Dodgers have tremendous, albeit fragile, depth in the rotation and still have some polished arms in the minors (even after all the trades in the past year) who can step in when needed to like Stripling and Stewart did last season.

The Dodgers’ best options are either trading Kazmir or designating him for assignment. Last season the front office showed they weren’t afraid to DFA unproductive big money players past their prime.

Scott Kazmir doesn’t have much value at this point so if the Dodger want to trade him, they will have to eat up a healthy portion of his contract. Luckily there are pitching-starved teams such as the San Diego Padres, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, and Minnesota Twins out there. Kazmir would not be their first choice but they are teams in need and Kazmir is a possible buy-low candidate.

The Dodgers have a few choices to choose from. The first is to pay Scott Kazmir over $17 million this season to struggle and hold the team back while taking up a valuable roster spot. Another option is to pay him after (possibly) releasing him following his designation for assignment and risk another team picking him up for cheap. And the other is to pay just a part of his contract to have him play for another team while picking up some sort of return.

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I believe the last one is the most logical because the front office won’t have to pay his full salary and it’s highly unlikely he improves this season. They will also at least get something back for him. He is very talented and I hope he can return to form but in reality he is old, injury prone, coming off a bad season and has seen his velocity diminish. The decline is only going to get worse.