2025 Dodgers season review: Brock Stewart

Six years after he left on waivers, Brock Stewart came back to the Dodgers at his year’s trade deadline, but the reliever’s return to the bullpen was cut short by a shoulder injury.

Originally drafted by the Dodgers in the sixth round in 2014 out of Illinois State, Stewart pitched in parts of four seasons in Los Angeles as a swing man, famously making numerous trips to and from Triple-A until he was claimed off waivers by the Blue Jays in 2019.

Stewart was taken by the Cubs in the 2019 Rule 5 Draft but he ended up getting released and pitched 2020 in an Independent League. He signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in 2021 but did not pitch, and had Tommy John surgery that May. He found a home with the Twins, first on a minor league deal in 2022 and then in the majors over the next three years.

With the Twins from 2023-25, Stewart had a 2.33 ERA and 2.68 xERA in 77 1/3 innings. But he also missed time with elbow soreness, shoulder tendinitis, a shoulder strain that required arthroscopic surgery in August 2024, and a hamstring strain this season.

When on the mound, Stewart was very good with the Twins in 2025, with a 2.38 ERA and 2.31 xERA in 39 games. The Dodgers acquired him at the trade deadline for outfielder James Outman, who had fallen to the bottom of the depth chart in Los Angeles.

Stewart with the Dodgers allowed runs in two of his four appearances, matching his total from his previous 17 games with the Twins over the previous six weeks. He was only active for 10 games with Los Angeles, placed on the injured list on August 12 with shoulder inflammation.

He tried the rehab assignment route with three games for Oklahoma City, but wasn’t improving. Stewart had shoulder surgery in the last week of the regular season, which is expected to keep him sidelined for part of 2026 as well.

Age: 33

Stats: 4 games, 3 2/3 IP, 2 runs, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts with Dodgers; 2.38 ERA, 34 IP, 41 K, 11 BB with Twins

Salary: $870,000, of which the Dodgers paid roughly $275,968

In his first game back with the Dodgers, on August 3 in Tampa, Stewart pitched a scoreless eighth inning to protect a 2-0 lead over the Rays, working around a two-out single by Junior Caminero.

With four years, 93 days of major league service time, Stewart is eligible for salary arbitration for a second time. MLB Trade Rumors projects Stewart to earn $1.4 million in 2026, while Cot’s Contracts predicts a $1.25 million salary for the right-hander. Stewart is out of minor league options.