Dodgers end their one-year affair with Juan Nicasio

They love you, they don’t need you. You’re the grand answer, you’re out the door. Baseball can be a fickle business, if not a cruel one.

Last off-season right-hander Juan Nicasio was supposed to be part of the answer to the Dodgers’ bullpen woes, this off-season he was not tendered a contract Wednesday night and is now a free agent.

Nicasio, 29, was uneven last season, but still semi-effective (1-3, 3.86 ERA). He appeared in 53 games (one start) but by the end of the season was having so much trouble with left-handed hitters (.349 opponent batting average) he was left off the postseason roster.

He made $2.3 million last season and was probably in line for a raise to more than $3 million in arbitration.

The Dodgers also didn’t tender a contract to right-hander Lisalverto Bonilla, another front office pick-up who never actually wore a Dodgers uniform. He was taken off waivers from Texas last month after missing last season following Tommy John surgery. Bonilla, 25, was not eligible for arbitration but was on the 40-man roster.

The Dodgers did tender contracts to six players who can now go through the arbitration process if unable to reach a contract agreement: Kenley Jansen ($7.43 million last season), Chris Hatcher ($523,000), Justin Turner ($2.5 million), Yasmani Grandal ($693,000), Luis Avilan ($530,000) and Scott Van Slyke ($522,500).