Athletics sign relief pitcher Scott Barlow

Scott Barlow (Reunion, Wikimedia Commons)

The Athletics have signed relief pitcher Scott Barlow of New London, Connecticut according to Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors and Robert Murray of FanSided on Friday. The terms of the deal are for one year and $2 million.

The Athletics are the fifth Major League Baseball team that Barlow has played for. He was previously with the Kansas City Royals for six seasons from 2018 to 2023, and one season with the San Diego Padres (2023), one season with the Cleveland Guardians (2024), and one season with the Cincinnati Reds (2025).

In 2025 with the Reds, Barlow had a record of six wins and three losses with an earned run average of 4.21 in 75 games. During 68 1/3 innings pitched, he gave up 50 hits, 32 earned runs, eight home runs and 45 walks, to go along with 75 strikeouts, one save, 16 holds, and a rather high WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 1.39. The major reason why Barlow had such a high WHIP this past season was because his 45 walks were a career high.

Barlow’s save this past season came on August 18 in a 4-1 Reds win over the Los Angeles Angels. Barlow threw an inning and a third of shutout baseball, and had four strikeouts compared to one walk. He faced five batters, and threw 25 pitches of which 14 pitches were strikes.

It was a poor 2025 season for the Athletics in their first year in Sacramento. They had a record of 76 wins and 86 losses, and were in fourth place in the American League West. However, they had seven more wins than the previous season of 2023.