Oakland Athletics add another former Giants' reliever to the bullpen

The Athletics have added another former Giants pitcher to their bullpen mix, signing lefty Scott Alexander to a one-year deal. In a corresponding move, the A's have placed righty Ken Waldichuk on the 60-day IL as he recovers from flexor tendon surgery.

The 33 year old Alexander has spent the past two years in San Francisco, throwing a combined 65.1 innings with a 3.70 ERA and a 3.16 FIP. He has a career 17.9% strikeout rate which is well below league average, but he's been mostly effective in low-leverage roles.

Despite the middling stuff, Alexander has been able to carve out a 9 year MLB career, bouncing between the majors and Triple-A for the Giants, Dodgers, and Royals since his debut back in 2015.

The Athletics were fairly thin on left-handed pitching prior to the move. Kyle Muller, Sean Newcomb, and Hogan Harris were the only other left-handed bullpen options on the 40-man roster as JP Sears and Alex Wood are slated for starting roles.

With the news of Newcomb progressing slowly from his multiple knee surgeries this offseason, Alexander gives manager Mark Kotsay another experienced bullpen option.

He's a near lock to make the opening day roster, barring a quick turnaround for Newcomb and multiple younger players tearing it up throughout the spring.

Alexander will add veteran experience to a club filled with younger players. He has been teammates with both Alex Wood and Ross Stripling throughout the past several years. The trio played together in San Francisco last season, and they were also teammates back in 2018 with the Dodgers.

It'll be interesting to see how the group plays out for the Athletics in 2024. Wood and Stripling should be mainstays in the rotation assuming both are healthy. Whether Alexander sticks in the bullpen all season will be dependent on performance, as the A's have a number of young pitchers vying for playing time.