Veteran reliever Yency Almonte is back with the Dodgers on a minor league contract, rejoining a team he pitched for in both 2022 and 2023.
Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic reported the signing, and earlier Thursday morning Almonte himself posted a picture on Instagram of him holding a Dodgers cap in front of his locker at Camelback Ranch.
Almonte has battled injuries over the past four seasons, including right shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum in July 2024 while with the Cubs. He didn’t pitch in the majors in 2025, spending the entire season on the 60-day injured list. He did last year pitch 15 games in the minors on rehab between High-A South Bend and Double-A Knoxville, posting a 1.86 ERA in 19 1/3 innings, with 17 strikeouts and 10 walks.
In his first foray with the Dodgers, Almonte also signed a minor league deal in 2022. He reached the majors in May and posted a 1.02 ERA and 2.89 xERA in 33 games, with 33 strikeouts and 10 walks in 35 1/3 innings and missed seven weeks with right elbow tightness. He struggled in 2023, with a 5.06 ERA and 4.38 xERA in 49 games in a year that was cut short by a right knee sprain.
Traded to the Cubs in the Michael Busch deal, Almonte in 2024 had a 3.45 ERA and 3.29 xERA in 17 games with 20 strikeouts and eight walks in 15 2/3 innings before succumbing to his shoulder injury.
Almonte, who turns 32 in June, has a 4.44 career ERA in 213 games, all relief appearances for the Rockies, Dodgers, and Cubs over seven major league seasons, with 215 strikeouts and 95 walks in 223 innings.