Oakland Athletics: 30 Worst Players in Franchise History

Octavio Dotel

Although Octavio Dotel was not particularly bad, it’s his longevity that makes his mediocrity stand out. Altogether, the right-handed reliever has pitched 15 years in the big leagues – and played for nearly half the teams in the league. The Athletics were one of those 13 teams, when Dotel graced them with his presence from 2004 to 2005.

In that time, Dotel was 7-4 with a 3.95 ERA, which doesn’t sound so bad, but his FIP (fielding independent pitching) crept up to 4.00, and his WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) was a 1.212. He allowed nearly one walk per every two appearances, which is fairly astonishing for a relief pitcher. If he allowed a base runner in every other game, not even including runners who reach on hits or fielding miscues, it seems that his ERA would be much, much higher.

Dotel was not the worst reliever to ever come through the Athletics’ system, but he was certainly not one of the best. The fact that he’s managed to convince so many teams to sign him is impressive, given that he’s never been more than a middling middle-reliever, and he allows more traffic on the base paths than bullpen guys should.

Next: The Worst A's Players in History: T.J. Mathews