Ex-Red Sox Pitcher Explains How Dodgers Revived Career

The Boston Red Sox will host a litany of former players at Fenway Park this weekend.

Mookie Betts will almost certainly garner much of the attention in his return to Boston, but former Red Sox players J.D. Martinez, Kiké Hernández and Joe Kelly will also be in attendance when the Los Angeles Dodgers come to town. Justin Turner and Kenley Jansen, who each won a World Series with the Dodgers, are set to face their former team once again, as well.

There’s one player that seems to have been lost in the shuffle, however.

Ryan Brasier was designated for assignment by the Red Sox in May after a putrid start to the season, allowing 17 earned runs on 24 hits in 21 innings to post a 7.29 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. The 35-year-old would eventually sign a minor-league deal with the Dodgers, before earning his way back to the big leagues and becoming a key member to their bullpen.

“They did exactly what they said they would,” Brasier said of his decision to sign with LA, per Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. “Their track record with other pitchers weighed into the consideration for going there. They were the only team that reached out the way they did. I felt like they had a super-solid plan.”

What was that plan, you ask? Learn a new pitch.

The Dodgers told Brasier they wanted him to learn to throw a cutter, according to Abraham, explaining how it would pair well with his slider and four-seam fastball.

They were right, as Brasier has posted a 1.11 ERA across 24 appearances for LA, with a 0.74 WHIP and 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings. Those are elite numbers, which Dodgers manager Dave Roberts believes partly stem from his extended stint in Boston.

“I liked that he played for the Red Sox,” Roberts said, per Abraham. “He’s been in the hotbox and come out on the other side. I trust him in any spot. Having played for the Sox made him a better pitcher.”

Brasier and his new pitch will return to Boston this weekend, giving Red Sox fans another taste of the past alongside his Dodgers teammates.