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Dodgers’ Call Up PCL Pitcher of the Week Mike Bolsinger

By Wayne Cavadi

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are loaded with pitching prospects in their farm system. Julio Urias is considered the unquestioned left handed prospect in the game now that Carlos Rodon is in the bigs. Grant Holmes, Zach Lee and Zachary Bird are other big names associated with the Dodgers future pitchers. Mike Bolsinger has never been one of those names.

Bolsinger will start today for the Dodgers, making his 2015 big league debut. The right hander was drafted three times before settling with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 15th round of the 2010 draft. He has had a modest career, never really standing out at any level of the Minor Leagues. This past offseason, his contract was purchased by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

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The 27-year old righty is off to the best start in his career. He has made two starts for the Oklahoma City Dodgers. He has allowed three hits and three walks while striking out 17 across his first two starts. After he hurled his second consecutive scoreless start, he earned his first Pitcher of the Week Award of his 6-year career. Now he is heading to Los Angeles to start against the defending world champs.

Bolsinger made his Major League debut last season with the Arizona Diamondbacks. It was not pretty as he ended up posting a 1-6 record with a 5.50 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. According to MiLB.com, Bolsinger would zip through the lineup without problem in his debut, limiting opponents to a .188 batting average. Whether he didn’t have enough pitches in his arsenal or he was not stretched out properly to make the jump, Bolsinger faulted the second and third time he faced a lineup. The third time around that a lineup saw Bolsinger, they were smacking him around at a .406 lick.

But 2015 brought a new year and a new team… as well as a new pitch. All of this has seemed to help Bolsinger turn the corner.

"“You look at guys like (Clayton) Kershaw, (Brandon) McCarthy, (Brett) Anderson, how they prepare for a game, I really wasn’t doing the kind of prep that I should’ve been,” Bolsinger told the LA Daily News. “It’s like I was going in the bullpen before a game and just throwing to warm up, not throwing to get ready. Last year I noticed that in the first and second inning I really wasn’t ready. So (I thought), ‘why don’t you throw the first inning in the bullpen?’ Then when you go out there for the first inning, you’re pitching like it’s the second inning.”"

Clearly, the influence of the veterans he is surrounded by is paying off, as Bolsinger is out to by far the best start of his career. He also spent the offseason developing a new pitch for his weapons.

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Bolsinger had a three pitch arsenal, but according to scouts, none of them were overwhelmingly impressive. He had the typical pitches a rookie would posses: a fastball, a curveball, and a changeup, with only any sort of semblance of consistency coming from his curve. Now, he can add a slider to his repertoire.

“It was a pitch that I thought wasn’t going to be as good as it was,” Bolsinger said to the LA Daily News. “Throwing that fastball inside to righties and lefties, it opens up the other side of the plate so much. That’s where that slider complements that inside pitch. That’s what I’d been most surprised about.”

A 27-year old with the track record Bolsinger has had is no longer considered a prospect, especially a top prospect. But Bolsinger has a chance to impress in Hyun-Jin Ryu’s absence. Should he carry over his hot start in the PCL to the Majors, Bolsinger may just stick around longer than he, or anyone else, expected.

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