Inside The Dodgers

Dodgers Castoff Pitcher Signs With American League Contender

J.P. Hoornstra|
Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Jose Urena (47) throws against the New York Mets during the ninth inning at Dodger Stadium on June 3, 2025.
Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Jose Urena (47) throws against the New York Mets during the ninth inning at Dodger Stadium on June 3, 2025. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

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Los Angeles Dodgers

The Jose Ureña era in Los Angeles lasted one week.

The veteran pitcher is hoping the Ureña era in Minnesota lasts longer. He signed a minor league contract with the Twins on Tuesday and was assigned to Triple-A St. Paul.

Remarkably, the Twins will be Ureña's 11th organization since his 2015 debut and the fourth this season. He's made nine major league appearances this season for three different teams: the New York Mets (one), the Toronto Blue Jays (six) and the Dodgers (two).

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Ureña, 33, lost his spot on the Dodgers' active roster on June 10, when he was designated for assignment to make room for Matt Sauer.

The right-hander allowed four hits and one run across three innings (3.00 ERA) in his two appearances with the Dodgers. He couldn't be optioned to the minors, which previously led him to be outrighted by the Mets (May 1) and designated for assignment by the Blue Jays (May 31) already this season.

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Across his stints with the Mets, Jays and Dodgers, Ureña has a 5.40 ERA in nine games (two starts). The right-hander is 44-77 with a 4.78 ERA in 241 games (154 starts) with the Miami Marlins, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Colorado Rockies, Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers, Mets, Jays and Dodgers in his career.

The Twins are 38-42, 4.5 games out in the American League Wild Card race.

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The Dodgers have added eight different pitchers to their bullpen mix this month, either via trades, minor league promotions, or injured list activations.

Most of those newcomers were mere transients; besides Ureña, the Dodgers have designated Ryan Loutos and Chris Stratton for assignment this month. They promoted and quickly demoted Jack Little, Matt Sauer, and Noah Davis. They also acquired Zach Penrod from the Red Sox and Garrett McDaniels, who was returned from the Angels after becoming a Rule 5 draft pick last December.

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Ureña has appeared in 241 career games (154 starts) for the Miami Marlins, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers, Rockies, Mets and Blue Jays since his 2015 debut. He's 44-77 with a 4.78 ERA in his career.

To make up ground in the Wild Card race, the Twins need more from their pitchers. Minnesota's pitching staff has a 6.42 team ERA in June (through Wednesday), easily the worst in MLB.

Ureña's next opportunity in baseball might be the one that keeps him in the big leagues more than a month.

For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on Sl.

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J.P. Hoornstra
J.P. HOORNSTRA

J.P. Hoornstra is an On SI Contributor. A veteran of 20 years of sports coverage for daily newspapers in California, J.P. covered MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Angels (occasionally of Anaheim) from 2012-23 for the Southern California News Group. His first book, The 50 Greatest Dodgers Games of All-Time, published in 2015. In 2016, he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for breaking news coverage. He once recorded a keyboard solo on the same album as two of the original Doors.

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