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Colon falters again as disastrous season with Braves continues

Jason Getz / USA TODAY Sports

This is far from sexy.

Just a year removed from an All-Star berth and his historic and memorable home run, 44-year-old Atlanta Braves starter Bartolo Colon has become the worst pitcher in baseball - and it's not even close.

Colon's awful start to 2017 continued on Monday, when he allowed eight runs in 3 2/3 innings of work against the Philadelphia Phillies. When he was finished, the former Cy Young winner's ERA had risen to an MLB-worst 7.78 - over a run higher than the second-worst qualified starter, Masahiro Tanaka.

In his last 11 innings pitched, Colon has allowed 24 runs. Monday's outing made him the first Braves starter to give up seven or more runs in three consecutive outings since Hall of Famer Phil Niekro in 1979, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

The oldest player in baseball, Colon signed a one-year, $12.5-million contract with Atlanta this winter following a remarkable age-43 season in New York, with the expectation that he'd be a contributor to a rebuilding Braves club despite his advanced age.

Colon - who was out of baseball in 2010 before surprisingly resurfacing one year later - came into 2017 having just completed his third solid season in New York, where he became a fan favorite. That Mets stint put a bow on what's been a remarkable career that's included four All-Star appearances, a trip to the World Series, the 2005 AL Cy Young Award, and - perhaps most incredibly of all - becoming the oldest player ever to hit his first career home run last May.

But after this latest meltdown in Atlanta, it's time to start wondering if the clock has finally struck midnight on the legend that is Big Sexy.

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