Season in review about nothing: Josh Ravin, ‘The Yada Yada.’

Josh Ravin

Josh Ravin made his major league debut with the Dodgers in June, but that wasn’t the most interesting part of his season. (Getty Images)

This is Part 39 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.

Josh Ravin, RP

Key stats: 2-1, 6.75 ERA in nine games (0 starts)

Seinfeld episode: “The Yada Yada.” (Season 8, Episode 19)

Key quote: “My old boyfriend came over late last night, and, yada yada yada, anyway I’m really tired today.”

Josh Ravin came out of nowhere to make nine appearances out of the Dodger bullpen in 2015. Not exactly nowhere, mind you — he’s a native of the San Fernando Valley and still lives there in the off-season — but Ravin was 27 years old when he made his debut after pitching 207 minor league games from 2006 to 2015.

The story of how a journeyman right-hander brought his 102-mph fastball to the Los Angeles Dodgers is more interesting than the nine games themselves.

I wrote this back in June:

Ravin could be accused of being distracted as a youth. A native of West Hills, “growing up I was very active as far as riding bikes, scooters, skateboards, jumping off of things. I loved adrenaline and anything I could do to just be not normal and out of the ordinary.”

Maybe, he admitted, the endless string of off-field pursuits left him prone to injury. At various points over 10 minor-league seasons, Ravin dealt with injuries to his groin, oblique, forearm, shoulder, hamstring and knee. He could be forgiven for leaving one out.

Injuries, combined with a lack of control, stalled Ravin’s development. His performance at Triple-A Oklahoma City was too strong for the Dodgers to ignore: A 2.25 earned-run average in 14 appearances spanning 20 innings. He struck out 30 batters compared to eight walks and 12 hits allowed.

As for Ravin’s nine games in the big leagues, some were good and some were bad. Twice, he pitched two innings in close games and did not allow a run. After his second 2-inning relief appearance on June 14, Ravin pitched three times over the next five days. He allowed four runs and was sent back to Triple-A.

Ravin made two more appearances in July and that was it. Back to the minors for good. He’s still on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster, but that seems tenuous. So long as Ravin’s triple-digit fastball comes with accuracy and movement, he’s got a legitimate chance of contributing to the bullpen in 2016. If he struggles with control and throws a flat heater, his 40-man spot could be in jeopardy.

It would be nice if the Josh Ravin story ended there. On October 4, his brother Joel was kidnapped, forced into a vehicle and shot multiple times but survived. The pitcher broke the news on his Twitter account to most of the world, writing at the time “We don’t need gun control. We need Mental Health Control!” and “Last time I checked guns weren’t sentient…” Those tweets have since been deleted.

Two suspects in the case were charged in December. A spokesperson for the District Attorney’s office told me a preliminary hearing is scheduled to begin Feb. 11 at the Van Nuys courthouse.

The lead-up to Ravin’s debut, and the sad story about his brother, bookended a fairly forgettable season for Ravin on paper. You could almost summarize his actual performance in three words (rather, one word repeated three times): “Yada yada yada.”

In “The Yada Yada,” George dates a woman who likes to skim over her thoughts with the convenient three-word catchphrase. “It’s like you’re dating USA Today,” Jerry says. “Yada yada yada” is very convenient when cutting extraneous information out of a story, but be careful. It can be overused:

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About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.