Los Angeles Dodgers: No One Surprised By Edinson Volquez’s 1st Start

Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Dodgers signed free agent pitcher Edinson Volquez at the end of August, but fans and analysts alike didn’t expect much out of the six-foot Dominican. Below are two less-than-enthusiastic tweets about the transaction, one from a GM Ned Colletti parody account and the other from well-known Dodgers blogger Chad Moriyama:

I love having nightmares, because you wake up with a feeling of relief. I just dreamt I signed Edinson Volquez. #Dodgers

— Nedward Colletti (@NedwardColletti) August 29, 2013

Rofl. RT @Buster_ESPN: Sources: LAD have serious interest in signing Edinson Volquez, who was released by the Padres.

— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) August 29, 2013

After starting 27 games in 2013 for the San Diego Padres, Volquez had inflated his ERA to 6.32, worst in all of MLB among qualifying pitchers. His 9-10 record is not terrible due in part to the Padres’ generous run support of 4.18 runs per start, but Volquez has by no means been a good pitcher this season.

Volquez continued his poor play in his first start with the Dodgers Wednesday night against the Colorado Rockies. After only four innings, manager Don Mattingly removed the right-hander, who had given up four earned runs off of six hits. With a less-than-sparkling reputation trailing him, Volquez’s performance is not a surprise to most fans and critics.

Optimists will hope that Volquez can rebound in his next start, but realists pose the question: “will Mattingly give Volquez another start?”

Although the Dodgers made Volquez’s first start interesting with a late-game rally, the Boys in Blue fell to the Rockies 7-5 in Denver. If Volquez is trusted with another start – and that’s an “if” as large as his ERA – he will benefit from being away from the thin air at Coors Field, but I doubt that will help.

The Padres dumped him for a reason, and Volquez really has not had a good year since 2008. I do not expect the end of 2013 to be much different from his past.

Please leave a comment below telling me what you think about Volquez, especially whether or not you think he should get another start for the Dodgers. Thanks for reading!

Isaac Comelli is a Los Angeles Dodgers writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @IsaacComelli, “Like” him on Facebook or follow him on Google.