Twins place reliever Brock Stewart on 15-day IL
Umpire Alfonso Marquez wipes the arm of Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Brock Stewart with a towel in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Friday, June 23, 2023, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Already dealing with fewer arms in the bullpen, the Minnesota Twins have put one of their best relievers on the injured list.
Tuesday, the club announced that Brock Stewart was put on the 15-day injured list due to right elbow soreness. The move is retroactive to Monday.
Signed to a minor league deal last year and added to the 40-man and big-league rosters in late April, Stewart has been one of Minnesota’s best relief pitchers this season.
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In 25 games this season, he’s gone 2-0 with a 0.70 ERA across 25.2 innings, striking out 35 and walking 11 while holding opponents to a .172 batting average against.
His move to the injured list comes just days after reliever José De León was lost to injury while he warmed up on Saturday. He’s out for the rest of the year and will need Tommy John surgery on his elbow, the club says.
To fill Stewart’s roster spot, the Twins recalled pitcher Oliver Ortega. He appeared in one game for Minnesota last week against Boston before being sent back to Triple-A St. Paul.
At Triple-A, Ortega has appeared in 17 games for the Saints this season, going 3-0 with a 2.22 ERA and 29 strikeouts across 24.1 innings.