Mike Bolsinger

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Michael Peter Bolsinger

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Biographical Information[edit]

Starting pitcher Mike Bolsinger pitched in the Arizona Diamondbacks system from 2010 to 2014, after he was taken by them in the 15th round of the 2010 amateur draft. The signing scout was Theodore Lewis. He was initially drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 34th round of the 2006 amateur draft, then by the Oakland Athletics in the 33rd round of the 2009 amateur draft, but did not sign either time. He began with the Yakima Bears in 2010, going 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in 6 relief appearances. In 2011, he was a combined 6-6 with a 2.63 ERA in 33 games (13 starts) for the South Bend Silver Hawks and Triple A Reno Aces, and in 2012, he was 7-5 with a 3.35 ERA in 22 starts split between the Visalia Rawhide and Mobile Bay Bears. In 2013, he was 11-7 with a 4.06 ERA in 26 games (23 starts) split between the Bay Bears and Aces.

Mike had a rough first season in the major leagues after making his big league debut with Arizona on April 14, 2014. In 10 games, 9 starts, he was 1-6 with an ERA of 5.50 over 52 1/3 innings. He spent the remainder of the season in the minor leagues with Reno, going 8-3, 3,93 in 17 games. After the season, he was purchased by the Los Angeles Dodgers but was expected to spend 2015 in Triple A unless the Dodgers had a lot of injuries to their projected starters. That is exactly what happened, as he was called up to make a start on April 23rd and ended up with a no decision. He came back May 12th and won his first three starts, including back to back starts in which he did not allow a run. On June 8th, he improved to 4-1 with a 9-3 win over his former team, the Diamondbacks, and had a 2.08 ERA as one of the most reliable starters on the team once getting a chance to take a regular turn in the starting rotation. He ended up going 6-6, 3.62 in 21 games, all starts, pitching 109 1/3 innings and striking out 98. The Dodgers won a division title but he was not used in the postseason.

2016 was a tough season for Mike. He did not make the Dodgers' staff out of spring training, and when he was called up to the big league team in May, he pitched poorly. In 6 starts, he was 1-4, 6.83 and was sent back down in mid-June. In the minors with the Oklahoma City Dodgers, he was mainly used in long relief, going 2-1, 3.41 in 13 games but pitching only 29 innings. On August 1st, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in return for Jesse Chavez. He would not see the bigs with them until 2017, logging an unseemly 0-3, 6.31 mark in 11 games (41 1/3 innings). He signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines for 2018, spending two years in Japan and making the 2018 Pacific League All-Star team. He went 18-8, 3.87 in two seasons, but did not have a job heading into the 2020 season.

In February 2020, he announced that he was sickened by the 2017 Astros sign-stealing scandal and that he felt that he was personally a victim of the illegitimate practice, as an appearance when he was lit up for four hits and three walks in a third of an inning by the Astros on August 4th that year essentially ended his major league career (to date, it remains his final big league appearance). Mike filed a civil suit in Los Angeles Superior Court on February 10th, accusing the Astros of "unfair business practices, negligence and intentional interference with contractual and economic relations." He asked that the Astros and their players be forced to forfeit roughly $31 million in bonuses collected through their World Series win and remit them to charitable causes.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Nancy Armour: "Pitcher Mike Bolsinger says cheating Houston Astros changed course of his career", USA Today, February 10, 2020. [1]

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