The Los Angeles Dodgers called up six-year veteran pitcher Cole Irvin ahead of Friday’s bullpen game against the Boston Red Sox and placed Brock Stewart on the 15-day injured list with a sore right shoulder. To make room on the 40-man roster, Chayce McDermott was designated for assignment.
The Dodgers don’t expect Stewart to be out for long, but the right-hander is coming off shoulder surgery last season and missed the start of the season.
“No, it’s not. It’s really not,” Roberts said if there was concern given his previous shoulder issue. “I think this is something that we are being proactive on and really trying to talk through it with Brock and understanding our thought behind it with the bullpen day, just the coverage, and not trying to put him or anyone else in harm’s way. We got to protect the downside, and so Cole can do that.”
Stewart is still expected to go for imaging on Saturday despite the club’s optimism. “But again, this is just more of a formality,” Roberts said. “I really believe this training staff believes that it’s going to be short-term.”
The 34-year-old has been limited to just 14.2 innings this year, but was working in a high-leverage role. He’s posted a 2.45 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 25.5% strikeout rate while walking 9.1%.
“He’s done a great job when he’s been active and really pitching well,” Roberts said. “So we have to make sure that with the calendar on our side, we’ve got to protect him and take the couple of weeks, and then get him back soon.”
Cole Irvin joins Dodgers bullpen to fill bulk role
The Dodgers signed Irvin to a Minor League contract before the start of this season with an invite to Spring Training. The left-hander was assigned to the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets to begin 2026 after allowing eight earned runs in eight innings of work during Cactus League play.
In 20 starts with the Comets, Irvin pitched to the tune of a 3.58 ERA across 98 innings of work. He is now expected to pitch the bulk of the game on Friday.
“He’s pitched fine. He can throw 100 pitches,” Roberts said. “He’s going to pitch tonight. Not sure when we’ll deploy him, but he’s obviously got Major League experience, and so just a dependable option tonight.”
The left-hander last pitched in the Majors during the 2024 season with the Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins. He made 25 appearances for the Orioles and was later traded to the Twins, where he pitched in four more games before being designated for assignment and later electing free agency.
His most successful season came in 2022 with the Oakland Athletics, where he threw 181 innings with a 3.98 ERA, a 1.16 WHIP and limiting opponents to a .251 batting average.
Given Stewart’s injury and Shohei Ohtani being sidelined from pitching, Irvin makes sense as a serviceable stopgap starter whom the Dodgers can shuttle between the Majors and Minors without much risk of another team claiming him.
It’s unclear if Irvin will stick with the club after Friday, but it may depend on how many pitches he throws and how the rest of the bullpen is used.
“I think we’re kind of just focused on getting through tonight, and we’ll just see where that takes us,” Roberts said.
L.A.’s starting pitching depth has been challenged this season, but reinforcements are on the way. Blake Snell is nearing the end of his rehab assignment, while Tyler Glasnow is nearing the start of his own.
Chayce McDermott DFA’d
McDermott was designated for assignment after two stints with the Dodgers this season.
McDermott made his Dodgers debut in the finale of the Freeway Series on May 17 when he pitched a scoreless inning. He was optioned the following day as a corresponding move to the Dodgers’ signing of Jonathan Hernández.
He then pitched in the Dodgers’ series finale against the Baltimore Orioles, allowing two runs on a homer in 1.1 innings of work before being optioned for Stewart on June 22.
The right-hander owns a 7.71 ERA this season and a career 12.00 ERA in 15 innings.
He was acquired from the Baltimore Orioles on April 16 for Axel Perez. The former top pitching prospect was designated for assignment on April 11 as a corresponding move to the Orioles calling up Maverick Handle while putting Adley Rutschman on the 10-day injured list with left ankle inflammation.
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