There’s a pretty good chance that few Dodger fans had ever heard of Dylan Floro before he was traded to the Dodgers from the Cincinnati Reds along with Zach Neal and international bonus slot money in exchange for Dodgers minor leaguers James Marinan and Aneurys Zabala on July 4th.

There’s an even better chance that few Dodger fans have not heard of him since.

Although Floro has appeared in only four game with the Dodgers and has tossed only 4.2 innings, Dodger fans will recall that he retired the first 11 batters he face while recording 12 outs.

How is the possible, you ask? In his very first appearance in a Dodgers uniform (number 51), he inherited a runner on first base and immediately induced a double play.

Floro was initially drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 13th round of the 2012 MLB First-year Player Draft out of Cal State Fullerton. The 27-year-old Merced, California native made his major league debut with the Rays on July 7, 2016 and made a total of 12 appearances – all in relief – posting a 0-1 record and 4.20 ERA before being claimed off waivers by the Chicago Cubs on January 17, 2017.

With the Cubs, the 6′-2″ / 205-pound hard-throwing right-hander appeared in only three games without a decision, while logging a 6.52 ERA. Ironically, he was then claimed off waivers by the Dodgers on August 4, 2017, but was released two months later on October 3, 2017, when he was granted free agency. He then signed with the Reds as a free agent on January 8, 2018.

Floro appeared in 25 games with Cincinnati, posting a 3-2 record and 2.72 ERA, which undoubtedly again caught the eye of the Dodger scouts, hence his trade back to L.A. on July 4. Since then, the soft-spoken right-hander has allowed exactly one hit – a solo home run by Angels left fielder Justin Upton last Saturday – while striking out four and walking none in his 4.2 innings of work.

Although 4.2 innings is a ridiculously small sample size, Dylan Floro has been outstanding out of the Dodgers bullpen thus far. (Video capture courtesy of Fox Sports)

“Dylan Floro, I like the heartbeat, I like the way he attacks guys, he’s got a really good arm” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts of his newest reliever. “So, for him, a lot of what we’ve seen is a fastball. So, it’s the four-seam rider and it’s also the two-seam lane-changer. A little bit with the slider. So right now, I see him as a two-pitch pitcher but using two different fastballs, but I just love his aggressiveness.”

Pretty high praise for a guy who has only been in town a little more than two weeks.

But what has the ride been like for Floro, who is now in his fourth major league clubhouse in the past two years?

“It’s been fun so far, it’s been a great atmosphere,” Floro answered. “Everyone’s been welcoming me in, trying to help me out as much as possible. It’s been a great experience so far.”

Obviously, when you’ve been with four teams in two years, you come across many different personalities, something that Floro is enjoying and embraces.

“Everybody’s a little bit different in each clubhouse, you’ve just got to learn everybody’s name again all over,” Floro said with a chuckle. “You just kind of get to know people and I’ve kind of gotten used to it over the last two years, being thrown around a couple different clubhouses.

“You just kind of get a feel for how people work and just kind of stay out of their way until you get more of a feel, and just try to give them a hand and help as much as you can,” he added.

One of the adjustments when coming from smaller market teams such as Tampa Bay and Cincinnati is playing in front large crowds, especially during the just-concluded interleague Freeway Series with the Angels of Anaheim. What was it like for Floro to pitch in front of 53,797 fans – the largest crowd in all of baseball this season – on Saturday evening?

“That’s crazy. I come from Cincinnati … a little different,” he said. “We’re in first place over here and trying to get in those playoff spots as fast as possible, but it’s crazy. There’s a lot going on and the situations I’ve been pitching in, and you can’t ask for much more.”

Welcome to the craziness called the Dodgers, Dylan.