This is Part 34 of a series in which every member of the 2015 Dodgers has his season juxtaposed with an episode of the greatest sitcom of all-time. Don’t take it too seriously.
Juan Nicasio, RHP
Key stats: 1-3, one save, 3.86 ERA in 53 games (1 GS)
Seinfeld episode: “The Ex-Girlfriend” (Season 2, Episode 1)
Key quote: “He went from nods to nothing.”
The Dodgers signed Juan Nicasio with the intention of making him a relief pitcher, something he only did for the first time at the end of 2014 with the Colorado Rockies. With the Dodgers, other than a spot start in a bullpen game in Denver, Nicasio fully embraced his new role.
Sometimes, Nicasio had electric stuff. His fastball touched 99 mph; when his slider was 10 mph or more slower, it was unusually deceptive. By June 24, Nicasio had a 1.78 ERA, a .270 opponents’ slugging percentage, and 32 strikeouts in 30 ⅓ innings. Those are All-Star numbers, and Nicasio was the Dodgers’ seventh/eighth-inning guy at that point in the year.
The reason I cherry-picked June 24 is because Nicasio completely fell off after that date. The strikeouts were still there (33 in 28 innings), but he was hit much, much harder (.496 opponents’ slugging percentage). He was charged with a run in six of his final 12 regular-season appearances and was ultimately left off the Dodgers’ National League Division Series roster in favor of Joel Peralta.
Nicasio went from a solid middle reliever in April to a live BP pitcher in October. The Dodgers non-tendered Nicasio after the season and he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates for $3 million, a slight raise on the $2.3 million he made in 2015.
In “The Ex-Girlfriend,” Elaine shares an anecdote about her neighbor, a character whose standing undergoes a similar trajectory: