Dodgers continue shopping in bargain bin with latest bizarre signing

Rubby De La Rosa started his MLB career with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he hasn’t played in the Bigs since 2017. He is now back with the organization ahead of his 36-year season after signing a minor-league contract on Friday.

De La Rosa, who retired from the Dominican Republic in 2007, spent six years with the Dodgers before going to the Boston Red Sox in a massive trade with Adrian Gonzalez. He spent two years in Boston and then three in Arizona before his career took a turn for the worse.

De La Rosa underwent his second Tommy John surgery that year, missing all of 2018 and returning to Triple-A Reno with the D-Backs in 2019. After 18 games there, he decided to take his game to Japan, where he spent four seasons with the Yomiuri Giants (the Diamondbacks sold his rights to them).

In that span, and now a full assist, the right-hander recorded a 2.53 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with 33 saves and 118 strikeouts in 137 games (124.1 innings). Uh, not bad at all! And he’s been super consistent over the years, even though the workload wasn’t up to MLB standards.

In addition to needing pitching depth at the minor league, did the Dodgers just take a flyer on De La Rosa because of the chance he could provide relief at the big league level?

Information about De La Rosa’s last sojourn in Japan is scarce. It’s unclear what his pitch mix currently consists of, and we don’t know how hard he’s throwing. But his baseball savant side helps remind us of his skills.

The right-hander carried a fastball and a slider the last time he fielded in MLB. He averaged 97 MPH on his four sailer and 85 MPH on his slider. According to his 13-game percentile rankings in 2016, his numbers were favorable in a number of key categories, such as fastball speed, hard hit percentage, expected batting average and strikeout percentage.

Is an MLB renaissance imminent here?

If not, De La Rosa should be able to absorb enough innings at Triple-A if/when the likes of Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Tyler Cyr, Matt Andriese, Adam Kolarek, Jake Reed, Tayler Scott and others call to active receive roster.

Oddly enough…these will be De La Rosa’s first repeats at Triple-A Oklahoma City, as his first stint with the Dodgers saw him at the top before trading with the Red Sox at Double-A.

NEXT STORY: The Tigers sign the former Dodgers’ top prospect to a minor league deal