The Dodgers have signed veteran reliever Keynan Middleton to a minor league contract, per Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. The ACES client will add an experienced bullpen arm to the depth chart for Los Angeles.
Middleton didn’t pitch in the majors in either of the past two seasons and only tossed four minor league frames in 2024. He signed a one-year deal with the Cardinals following a nice 2023 season split between the White Sox and Yankees, but a spring flexor injury eventually required surgery over the summer. That sidelined him for the remainder of 2024 and nearly all of 2025, although Middleton did toss 3 2/3 scoreless innings for the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks late last season.
Injuries have repeatedly derailed an otherwise promising career trajectory for Middleton. He posted a 3.43 ERA with big strikeout numbers in 76 innings across his first two partial MLB seasons with the Angels in 2017-18 before requiring Tommy John surgery in 2019. He’s since dealt with biceps, ankle, foot and shoulder troubles, all leading to 2024’s flexor surgery.
Now 32 years old, Middleton has pitched in parts of seven major league seasons and compiled a 3.84 earned run average through 194 1/3 innings. He’s fanned an above-average 24.2% of his opponents but also issued walks at a 10.3% clip that’s a couple percentage points worse than average. Middleton averaged 97 mph with his fastball early in his big league career but was down to a 95.5 mph average in his most recent healthy season in 2023.
Even with that slightly diminished velocity, Middleton had no problem missing bats. From 2022-23, he posted an outrageous 17.1% swinging-strike rate, induced chases on 32.5% of pitches off the plate and struck out just over 28% of his opponents.
There’s not a lot of room in what’s currently a crowded Dodgers bullpen scene. Edwin Diaz will close games after signing as a free agent in the offseason. Tanner Scott, Blake Treinen and Alex Vesia are locked in as veteran setup pieces. Los Angeles has a deep collection of optionable young arms on the 40-man roster to help round the group out, including Will Klein, Justin Wrobleski, Ben Casparius, Edgardo Henriquez, Jack Dreyer, Paul Gervase, Bobby Miller and Ronan Kopp.
Ruined.
Woowened, I say!
Dodgers are ADDICTED to depth. Not sure why this guy’s agent couldn’t find a team with a snowball’s chance of at least a brief call-up during the season, let alone 40 man spot
Perhaps he feels the dodgers facilities and staff can get him back on track and have an opt out date to be available to other teams if he is looking like a useful piece after being built back up?
If he’s at all effective in the minors, he’ll get a chance to pitch some innings in the middle third of the season.
They tend to use the first third to evaluate the pitching and get everyone on track. The second third of the season to rest and limit innings for their most effective arms, and the rest of the time to make sure everyone is ramping up towards the playoffs and a strong finish.
Meh. This hurler is so Mid.
Middleton has a new release point. It’s called March 24.
The Cardinals paid Middleton $6M to throw 4 innings at AA.
Reminded me of the Jordan Walden situation.
Just when I had forgotten… 😉
The Dodgers must truly despise baseball and now have found a new way to ruin it by vacuuming up all the cheap affordable relievers, leaving the rest of baseball with nothing. The least they could do is only sign the most expensive veteran arms. Convenient time to suddenly go cheap. /s
Had any of the other remaining teams wanted Middleton, they had every opportunity to snag him during November, December, January, and February.
They did that last year with Scott and Yates. Does it have to be every year?
Diaz! Helsey, Bednar, Chapman, etc. for 2027. Take your pick if baseball still exists by then! I’ll be in my bunker if you need to find me.
I wonder if the bulk of this minor league contract is deferred into the 2040s?
I’m certain the humor in this joke will be deferred for the remainder of your time on earth.
Classic Dodgers move. Watch one of their BP arms go down and Middleton step in and find the fountain of youth. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit. He should be fully recovered from his surgery by now and while he’s been out of MLB action for nearly two years, he’s only 32 years old. I’m surprised a team like Tampa or Cleveland hadn’t signed him already. A very low risk, high reward signing by LA.