Former Dodgers Injury Prone Pitcher Heading to Padres

Cole Hamels could have been solid for the Dodgers, but he just never recovered from injury.

It's been a long time coming for Cole Hamels. The Dodgers signed him back in 2021 with high hopes and anticipation for what he could add to LA's pitching staff but he never took the mound in blue. In fact, he hasn't thrown a big league pitch since June 2020.

Now, after sitting out all of 2022, the former Dodger employee is trying to latch back on with the rival Padres on a minor league deal.

Cole Hamels is signing a minors deal with the hometown Padres

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) February 16, 2023

It's been a long 21 years since he was first drafted and 17 years since his major league debut, but Hamels grew up in San Diego so he might be looking to return home if he lands a roster spot. Notably, the Padres also recently added RHP Michael Wacha on a 4 year deal to add depth to the starting rotation.

The 37-year-old journeyman Hamels spent the majority of his career with the Phillies who drafted him in 2002. He then pitched for them from 2006 to 2015 while picking up a World Series title in 2008 before spending the next four and a half seasons with the Rangers.

He then spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons with the Cubs before moving to Atlanta for the 2020 season.

But he only pitched 3 innings with the Braves after dealing with shoulder fatigue for the majority of the COVID-shortened season.

Then the Dodgers, fresh off a 2020 World Series Championship, decided to take a chance on the three-time All-Star and signed him.

But the entire 2021 season went by and he never made an appearance on the mound. That winter, he elected free agency and hadn't been picked up since until the Padres decided to take a chance on him this upcoming season.

Overall, Hamels posts some pretty impressive stats. Across his career, he posts a 3.43 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP and 2,560 strikeouts across 2,698 innings.

Up until the 2020 season, he was a pretty consistent pitcher with his best season probably being in 2014 where he posted a 2.46 ERA across 30 games and 204 innings of work.

But it's hard to know if Hamels can ever get back to the All-Star and NLCS MVP form he once had. Maybe he'll have better luck with the padres but if not retirement might be the next option.