By Katherine Wacker,Last Word On Sports

Copyright yardbarker

Is He Healthy?

Stewart was acquired at the July 31 trade deadline from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for outfielder James Outman. He was once a Dodgers starter. However, he was traded away and evolved into a high-leverage reliever, specifically against right-handed batters. The only drawback of Stewart’s career is that he has struggled to stay healthy. Shortly after donning Dodger Blue, he was put on the injured list with a cranky shoulder. Since Stewart received a cortisone shot, he has felt “good.” Manager Dave Roberts said that Stewart will pitch on Tuesday and Thursday. If all goes well, he will rejoin the Dodgers sometime after that.

The Missing Link

The Dodgers lost closer Evan Phillips early this year to Tommy John surgery. Blake Treinen and Michael Kopech have missed extended time as well. To add insult to injury, Kirby Yates, who has also been injured, has not been effective. He sports an ERA well over five. As a result, Los Angeles has struggled to find a shutdown reliever from the right side for most of the season. If healthy, Stewart would be a much-needed stabilizer in the bullpen.

How Effective Can He Be?

In his time as a reliever in Minnesota, Stewart was able to strike out 30% of batters faced. This is likely due to an uptick in his fastball paired with a filthy sweeper. This led to an avoidance of hard contact as well as an ERA of 2.38. If Stewart is able to replicate that for the rest of the season, the Dodgers would be very happy.