Dodgers Pitcher 'Shocked' to Be Traded Ahead of Deadline

Aug 4, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (30) relieves Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Brock Stewart (41) in the ninth inning during an MLB game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers made it out of the trade deadline with less deals than the greater baseball world may have predicted, but certainly the right moves made to improve the ball club for both 2025 and beyond.

Right-handed reliever Brock Stewart was traded to the Dodgers from the Minnesota Twins in what had turned into an all-out selling spree by Minnesota.

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“I was a little shocked,” Stewart said to the Orange County Register of the trade. “If it was later on in the day, after the other nine other guys went, I wouldn’t have been that shocked.”

Stewart will now make his second stint with the Dodgers after being drafted by LA in 2014 (although first drafted by the New York Mets in 2010 before opting to go to Illinois State University).

After making his MLB debut in 2016, Stewart made 36 appearances in a Dodgers uniform before being claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019. Stewart would make his way back to the Dodgers organization ahead of the 2021 season on a minor league deal, but injuries would prevent him from logging any innings that year.

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Stewart was able to get back on track in 2023, but missed about three months with elbow complications. Across 28 appearances, however, Stewart had a 0.65 ERA with 39 strikeouts to 11 walks.

It was unfortunately more of the same in 2024 as right shoulder tendinitis would earn him significant time on the injured list, and a late July shoulder strain would shut him down for the rest of the year.

Before his trade to LA, Stewart put up a 2.38 ERA across 39 appearances. If the 33-year-old can stay healthy, he is a proven force in the bullpen. His hard-hit percentage (batted balls in play that are 95 mph or more) is among the best in baseball at 33.3 percent, or the 92nd percentile in MLB.

On average, Stewart's average exit velocity is at 87 mph, grading out in the 91st percentile among active pitchers. The reliever also creates a swing-and-miss rate of percentage of 31.6 percent, putting him in the 88th percentile in baseball.

After 2.2 total innings on the Dodgers (this season) Stewart has allowed a pair of earned runs, a walk, and six hits. The hope is that he gets closer to his Minnesota form, and does so in time for October.

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