Dodgers sign Dylan Covey to minors deal

Jan 28, 2023 - 1:05 PM

The Dodgers have signed pitcher Dylan Covey to a minor league contract, per J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group and Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic. The deal includes a non-roster invitation to spring training for the right-hander.

Covey the last two years pitched for the Rakuten Monkeys in the Chinese Professional Baseball League, including a 3.47 ERA in 23 starts last season, with 100 strikeouts and 50 walks in 140 innings.

His 13 wins were one shy of the league lead, which helped Rakuten to the best record in the CPBL and a trip to the Taiwan Series, which was won by the CTBC Brothers.

A local product from Marantha High School in Pasadena, Covey was drafted in the first round in 2010 by the Brewers, but did not sign. Three years later after college baseball at the University of San Diego, the A’s drafted Covey in the fourth round.

Covey made the majors after the White Sox selected him in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft. He pitched in parts of four seasons with the White Sox and Red Sox from 2017-20, posting a 6.57 ERA and 5.48 FIP in 71 games, including 45 starts. He struck out 184 and walked 116, his 5.7-percent strikeout-minus-walk rate ranking 228th among 232 major league pitchers with at least 200 innings over those four years.

He also allowed 47 home runs in 264⅓ innings, which helped fuel a 6-29 record, his .171 winning percentage tied for the 13th-worst in major league history among all pitchers with at least 20 decisions.

The 31-year-old Covey, if he makes the major league team, has no options remaining, having used option years in 2018, 2019, and 2020.

The first workout for Dodgers pitchers and catchers at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona — at least those not participating in the World Baseball Classic — is Thursday, February 16.