The Los Angeles Dodgers recalled Josh Fields, Brock Stewart and Julio Urias from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Wednesday afternoon. Stewart’s call up was expected, as he starts against the Colorado Rockies in the second of a three-game series at Coors Field.
By inserting Stewart into the rotation it pushes Kenta Maeda’s outing back to Wednesday, when he’ll start on five days’ rest. As the Dodgers needed to keep their rotation patched together earlier this season, they called on Stewart to make his Major League debut June 29 against the Milwaukee Brewers.
He allowed five runs in five innings, but also had seven strikeouts and showed flashes of the talent that’s led to a meteoric rise through the Minors this season.
Stewart began the year with High-A Rancho Cucamonga, going 2-0 with a 0.82 ERA and 10 strikeouts over two starts (11 innings pitched). After a promotion to Double-A Tulsa, he went 3-3 with a 1.60 ERA in nine starts.
The 24-year-old right-hander had 62 strikeouts to 10 walks during his time with the Drillers. Stewart was named to the Texas League All-Star Game, though didn’t participate because he was promoted to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
In three starts for Oklahoma City before joining the Dodgers, Stewart went 3-0 with a 2.89 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 27 strikeouts in 18.2 innings pitched. He’s 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA and 22 strikeouts in four starts with OKC since being sent back down.
Stewart has pitched six innings in each of the four outings, which would be welcomed by a Dodgers bullpen that’s regularly had to make up for starters struggling to pitch deep into games.
Overall with the OKC Dodgers, Stewart is 4-0 with a 2.95 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 49 strikeouts in seven starts (42.2 innings pitched). Across three Minor League affiliates, he’s 9-3 with a 1.80 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 121 strikeouts in 18 starts (110 innings).
Urias returns after being optioned to Oklahoma City on July 22. He allowed two runs in three innings of relief over two appearances since that date. Urias was slated to start for OKC on Wednesday.
Urias joins the Dodgers’ bullpen and while he has experience as a reliever in the Minors, he’s yet to be used out of the bullpen by the big league club. Fields was acquired from the Houston Astros on Monday.
He had a 6.89 ERA, 2.81 FIP, 1.66 WHIP and 28.2 strikeout percent rate over 15 games with the Astros this season. The 30-year-old fared better with Houston’s Triple-A affiliate, going 1-0 with one save, a 1.65 ERA and 0.65 WHIP in 23 relief appearances. Opponents batted .192 off Fields during that span.
To clear room on the active roster for Fields, Stewart and Urias, Louis Coleman (right shoulder fatigue) and Adam Liberatore (left elbow inflammation, retroactive to July 30) were placed on the 15-day disabled list, and Andrew Toles was optioned to Oklahoma City.
