Report: Jonathan Broxton Loses Dodgers Closer Job to Hong-Chih Kuo

In 2009, he was among the league’s most dominant closers. Again an All-Star in 2010, Jonathan Broxton appeared to rank among the best in the majors in his role. Then, things very abruptly went south.

On June 26, the flamethrower boasted a miniscule 0.83 ERA. While his current mark of 3.42 is far from disastrous, he has undergone a drastic transformation in form since midseason. He is striking out fewer batters, walking many more and, worst of all, he has sported a 7.45 and 6.75 ERA for July and August, respectively.

The final straw was his four-run blown save to cap off a seven-run Phillies comeback against the Dodgers on Thursday. This was his fifth truly disastrous performance since his June 26 peak.

He will be replaced by Hong-Chih Kuo, who currently has a 0.90 ERA and himself was an All-Star, as closer, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Manager Joe Torre has said that Broxton will have to earn his job back and that he thinks Broxton’s woes are “more mental than physical.”