When Braves fans think of what Robbie Erlin did in his time with the Atlanta Braves, thoughts may be… mixed, to say the least.
On Monday evening, Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America announced that former Atlanta Brave, Robbie Erlin, inked a minor-league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves legend will be jumping ship to pair up with the enemy to exact his revenge, apparently.
Per this update from Chris, #Dodgers have signed LHP Robbie Erlin to a minor league deal. Had not seen this reported previously.
— Alex Freedman (@azfreedman) February 21, 2022
Erlin, 31, has appeared in 115 career games in the Majors across 7 seasons. Played last year in Japan. https://t.co/nj5A96VBhM
Robbie Erlin, who spent the 2021 season with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball, last saw action in Major League Baseball in an Atlanta Braves uniform.
As a part of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, Erlin compiled a 3.32 ERA in 38 innings of work.
On August 8th, after the Braves placed Chris Martin on the injured list with esophageal constriction, they in turn claimed Erlin off waivers from the Pirates to fill that hole. In his debut with Atlanta, he allowed four runs in 2.2 innings while striking out five.
Erlin’s best performance, and only notable performance, with the Atlanta Braves was against the Miami Marlins on August 16, when he only allowed one hit while striking out five in four innings.
It was eventually announced on September 14 that Erlin had been released by the Braves. Aside from his near-perfect appearance against the Marlins, he allowed at least two runs in each of his other appearances with Atlanta and finished with an abysmal 8.24 ERA.
While Erlin was brought into Atlanta to make attempts to mend an injured pitching staff, he left Atlanta with multiple disappointing appearances and frustrations. With 7 seasons in Major League Baseball under his belt, the veteran southpaw will get a chance to prove himself again with the Dodgers.
Do you think Erlin cracks the Dodgers rotation in 2022, and can he become a serviceable big league starter? Let us know in the comments below.