Blake Hawksworth elects free agency

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Blake Hawksworth was outrighted to Triple-A but instead elected free agency as a six-year minor leaguer, reports Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

Dodgers reliever Blake Hawksworth, outrighted to Triple-A by the club last week, instead elected free agency as a six-year Minor Leaguer.

Hawksworth missed the entire 2012 season after undergoing three operations on his right arm. One procedure was on his shoulder and the other two were on his elbow.

The Dodgers acquired Hawksworth from the St. Louis Cardinals in November of 2010 in exchange for infielder Ryan Theriot trade.

The 29-year-old last pitched for the Dodgers during the 2011 season, maintaining an ERA of 4.08 over 49 appearances. He owns a career ERA of 4.07 over three seasons at the major league level with 6.1 strikeouts per nine innings and 3.3 walks per nine innings.

Hawksworth would have been arbitration eligible this winter if he had remained on the Dodgers’ roster.