Kirby Yates struggled in his one year with the Dodgers in a season marred by injuries and underperformance. The longtime reliever found a new home for his age-39 season, signing with the Anaheim Angels
on a one-year, $5 million contract on December 30.
Yates signed a one-year, $13 million contract with the Dodgers in January and earned another $500,000 by pitching in 50 games. The overall results were underwhelming. Yates had a 5.23 ERA and 4.29 xERA with three saves, 52 strikeouts, 17 walks, and nine home runs in 41 1/3 innings.
He also missed time on three separate injured list stints due to his right hamstring and lower back pain. The injuries serve as a demarcation of Yates’ 2025 season. Before his first IL trip in May, Yates had a 4.34 ERA, 3.05 FIP, and three home runs in 22 games, with a 38.8-percent strikeout rate and 7.5-percent walk rate. Afterward, he had a 5.96 ERA, 6.18 FIP, and six home runs in 28 games, with a 21.4-percent strikeout rate and 11.2-percent walk rate.
Yates’ final injured-list stint came in the last week of the regular season, and he was not active at all during any of the Dodgers’ four postseason series.
The Angels are Yates’ fourth team in four seasons, after pitching for the Braves in 2023, Rangers in 2024, and Dodgers in 2025. In 11 major league seasons, Yates also pitched for the Rays, Yankees, Angels, and Padres. The two-time All-Star has a 3.36 ERA and 98 career saves in 472 games, with 623 strikeouts and 181 walks in 452 2/3 innings.
