LOS ANGELES, CA—The 2025 Major League Baseball trade deadline is in full swing with multiple teams around the league making their final touches to the 2025 roster before the 3 PM PT hard deadline.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, a team that has been rumored to be seeking bullpen help over the last several days leading up to the deadline, have finally made their first significant move, reacquiring right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart from the Minnesota Twins.
The Dodgers have been connected to several top-tier relievers in their quest to strengthen the bullpen, such as Emmanuel Clase from the Cleveland Guardians, Jhoan Duran of the Minnesota Twins, and Ryan Helsley of the St. Louis Cardinals, among others.
However, Clase was placed on paid leave as the right-hander is involved in a gambling scandal, and Duran and Helsley were traded to two other National League contending teams.
With the market of arms starting to dwindle down, the Dodgers went to a familiar face in Stewart, who has reinvited himself since his last stint in Los Angeles back during the 2019 season.
Stewart is returning to the Dodgers for a second time. He was first drafted by the team in the sixth round of 2014 and debuted in MLB with them in 2016.
Stewart has pitched 34 innings with a 2.38 ERA this year. He has struck out nearly 30% of the batters he faced, supported by an impressive 14.7% swinging strike rate. He also maintains a league-average 7.9% walk rate and has been effective at avoiding hard contact.
Despite being 33 years old, Stewart is under cheap team control through arbitration until the end of the 2027 season.
Despite not being a name on many fans’ radar, this deadline, Stewart is a tremendous addition for a bullpen that is desperate for reinforcements.
Currently, the Dodgers’ bullpen ranks 22nd in ERA (4.24), and Stewart’s sub-three ERA, along with his elite strikeout rate, should instantly help Dodgers manager Dave Roberts in the second half of games.
Where Stewart really shines is against right-handed hitters, an area Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman stated in May, the team wanted to address after the season-ending injury to Evan Phillips.
This season, right-handed hitters are hitting only .104 with a .327 OPS and a 40% strikeout rate against Stewart, compared to a high-profile arm like Jhoan Durán, where righties have hit .228 off him this season.
The return to the Twins is currently unknown.
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