5 Reasons Why Dan Haren Will Fail With Los Angeles Dodgers

1 of 6

5 Reasons Why Dan Haren Will Fail With Los Angeles Dodgers

ss
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Before the start of the 2013 regular season the acquisition made by the Washington Nationals to bring in starting pitcher Dan Haren was supposed to be the move that completed their pitching staff. He wouldn’t be the best starter for them but he would certainly be a huge completing factor for the starting five and would give them a ton of nice neat chances to win. Now the same thing is being said of the Los Angeles Dodgers after they signed the journeyman starter to a free agent deal.

We all know already what happened with the Nationals. Their pitching was good but it wasn’t the best and while Haren did okay towards the back side of the pitching rotation he didn’t do what experts foretold he would do. Yet here we sit once again with the exact same situation. The Dodgers have a great top few pitchers already. They only needed someone to complete the five in a nice fashion. They signed Haren and now they will be dominant.

Why in the world would it be different? The exact same situation has unfolded for Haren so why would the results be different. I like Haren as a fifth starter but his best days seem to be behind him. He’ll log a few innings and give a few chances to win sure, but he isn’t the ultimate completion factor for the rotation this year, just as he wasn’t last year. Here are five reasons he will fail to meet the standards expected of him. Feel free to leave a comment below if you agree or disagree.

David Miller is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @davidmillerrant, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

Related:

5 Reasons Dan Haren Will Dominate With Los Angeles Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers: Dan Haren Signing Puts End to David Price and Masahiro Tanaka Talks

Dan Haren Returns Home, Should Give Los Angeles Dodgers Major Boost

2 of 6

5 – Recent History Doomed to be Repeated

ss
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Haren is a solid starter with decent stuff but he isn’t the savior of any starting staff. He is a decent fifth starter at this point in his career but the best that should be expected from him is an ERA around 4.00. If he is expected to hit a mark comparable to the other top starters for the Dodgers, he is doomed to failure.

3 of 6

4 – Home Run Balls

ss
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Haren is okay at keeping guys off of the bases as even last year he kept a WHIP of around 1.200. What hurt the ERA was the nearly 30 home run balls he gave up. While the Dodgers’ friendly confines aren’t exactly prone to giving up more home run balls than other parks, Haren could prove prone to doing so himself.

4 of 6

3 – Passed His Peak

SS
Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports

Haren has never been someone to be considered the top ace of a staff but at his best he was a middle of the rotation guy. He could prove this assumption wrong but it appears he has slipped past his prime and down to a five or four starter at best.

5 of 6

2 – New Contract Pressure

ss
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Anyone that gets a new contract is prone to a big slump the following season. If this is so for Haren he would be considered a disappointment to the Dodgers who usually provide very strong pitching. At his best he isn’t ace caliber but slumping would be something terrible for Dodgers fans.

6 of 6

1 – Pressure to Match Aces

ss
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

There is a possibility that one reason Haren struggled last year was the presence of the top performing ace pitchers for the Nats and self-imposed pressure to hang with those guys. If that is so, which it seems only human if it were, it will be a huge issue to try and hang with the top couple of guys for the Dodgers.

Around the Web

ZergNet