I admit it, I am a huge fan of Dodgers ambidextrous pitcher Pat Venditte. I mean, let’s face it. How many switch-pitchers can you name without using Google or Baseball-Reference.com? In fact, the 32-year-old Omaha, Nebraska native and 2008 20th-round draft pick out of Creighton University (by the New York Yankees) is the only switch-pitcher to make it to the major leagues in the 21st century.

Venditte remained in the Yankees minor league system until 2014 making it as high as the Triple-A level. He was eventually granted free agency on November 4, 2014 and was signed by the Oakland Athletics two weeks later. He made his MLB debut with Oakland on June 5, 2015 and appeared in 26 games with the A’s – all in relief – posting a 2-2 record and 4.40 ERA.

Venditte was released by the A’s following the 2015 season but was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays on October 19, with whom he appeared in eight games before being traded to the Seattle Mariners on August 6, 2015.

With the Mariners, the 6′-1″/185-pound switch-pitcher appeared in seven games until traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on March 11, 2017 for former Dodgers farmhand Joey Curletta. He was granted free agency by the Phillies following the 2017 and was signed to a minor league deal by the Dodgers on November 26, 2017 and given a non-roster invitation to major league spring training camp.

All Venditte did in his 10 major league spring training appearance with the Dodgers was allow two runs on 11 hits with three walks and 14 strikeouts in his 11.1 innings of work, while posting an 0-0 record and outstanding 1.59 ERA. As such, I was a bit surprised when the extremely polite and soft-spoken Omaha native was left off of the Dodgers 25-man Opening Day roster.

Aside from the novelty of being the only switch-pitcher in the MLB in the 21st century, Venditte was the Dodgers best reliever not named Kenley Jansen during spring training, yet he did not make the Dodgers Opening Day roster.
(Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

But with the continuing struggles with the Dodgers bullpen through the first seven weeks of the season, it came as no surprise – at least not for me – that Venditte finally received the call from the Dodgers (very) early Friday morning.

“It was about 1:30 the night before last,” Venditte said. “We actually had a 6:00 a.m. flight to Colorado Springs anyway and I was already in bed, you know expecting a long travel day. I just changed my destination, that’s all.”

A rather significant itinerary change, I’d say.

But having already spent parts of two seasons in the the big leagues with the Athletics, Blue Jays, and Mariners, and then beginning assigned to the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers to begin the 2018 season, was it difficult for Venditte to maintain a positive attitude?

“You have to go out there and continue what I did in spring training, and I was grateful that I was able to continue that,” he answered. “I knew that was going to be the only path to get here, and now that I’m here it’s just help the ball club any way I can.”

Again, with the Dodgers bullpen in a bit of disarray, it was no surprise that Venditte was called into action on the very day that he arrived in Los Angeles.

“I was expecting to be in there last night,” said Venditte. “Doc told me before the game to be ready to pitch. When that phone rings you’re ready to go.”

And go he did.

In Saturday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds, Venditte faced six batters over his 1.1 innings of work, retiring the one batter he faced in the top half of the sixth inning and three of the five that he faced in the seventh inning. He allowed no runs and one hit, with one strikeout in his Dodgers debut. Among those retired by Venditte was Reds first baseman Joey Votto, who he got to fly out to center on a left-handed slider.

“I loved it, I loved it,” said Dodger manager Dave Roberts about Venditte’s Dodgers debut. “He can strike a breaking ball, he can pitch with both arms, so I gotta go to the sheet and see how much workload he’s been with his left and his right, so I can see if I can use him today.”

Roberts did use Venditte again on Sunday, again with two outs in the top of the sixth inning. Things did not go quite as smoothly for the switch-pitcher this time.

Venditte appeared in his second game in as many days on Sunday afternoon. His second outing did not go as well as his first. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

The first batter he faced, Reds second baseman Alex Blandino, lined a sharp single just over the head of Dodgers shortstop Chris Taylor. The next batter, that same dangerous left-handed-hitting Joey Votto, was looking for that same left-handed slider from Venditte that he flew out to right on the night before.

He got one on the very first pitch from Venditte and he did not fly out to right. Instead, Votto slugged his sixth home run of the season, a two run shot to give the Reds a 5-3 lead and the eventual final score.

Having seen Venditte’s left-handed slider the night before on which he flied out to right, Reds slugger Joey Votto was looking for it on Sunday afternoon. He got one on the first pitch and crushed it into the Right Field Pavilion at Dodger Stadium for a two-run home run. (Video capture courtesy of SportsNet LA)

Over his combined 1.2 innings pitched thus far, Venditte has allowed two runs on three hits, with no walks and two strikeouts. Interestingly, of the nine total batters he has faced thus far, four have been while pitching right-handed to right-handed batters, and five while pitching left-handed to left-handed batters. Both of the runs he allowed came on the Votto home run and two of the three hits he has allowed were to lefties. As a result, Venditte has a 0.00 ERA pitching right-handed and a 10.80 ERA pitching left-handed.

While handedness in not taken into consideration in determining overall ERA (or wins and losses, or runs, hits, walks, and strikeouts allowed), this might be worth keeping a close eye on moving forward. In doing so, it’s impossible not to be both intrigued and amazed while watching the only switch-pitcher in the past 23 years.

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(Author’s note: ThinkBlue LA did a profile article on Pat Venditte during spring training 2018 entitled: Novelty aside, switch-pitcher Pat Venditte could land in Dodgers bullpen)