Athletics to sign former Royals, Reds 3.60 ERA reliever to $2 million deal

This offseason has been an exciting one for the Athletics. While they’ve not made a blockbuster trade or free agent signing, they have extended both Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom to long-term deals.

They’re cheap, young, ascending talent that the A’s will now have on the roster for the next seven years at minimum. Those are nice moves, but their outside additions are also worth noting.

Their most recent move is a nice bullpen pickup. According to Robert Murray of Fansided.com, the Athletics are also in agreement on a $2 million contract with a former Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds reliever.

Athletics agree to $2M deal with ex-Royals, Reds reliever

“Source: Free-agent reliever Scott Barlow and the A’s are in agreement on a one-year, $2 million contract that includes $1.3 million in performance bonuses,” Murray reports.

The A’s are bringing in a veteran reliever, 33-year-old Scott Barlow. He’s coming off a decent season for the Reds, in which he had a 4.21 ERA in 75 games, putting up 0.7 bWAR in his eighth year in the league.

Before joining the Reds, he bounced between the Cleveland Guardians and San Diego Padres, putting up a 4.25 ERA in 63 games and a 3.07 ERA in 25 games with those two teams, respectively.

But, before that, he was with the Royals for six seasons and posted a very respectable 3.39 ERA in 277 games during that time frame.

More: Former Yankees, Reds, A’s outfielder agrees to $4M deal with Padres

His best seasons came in 2021 and 2022, when he posted a 2.42 ERA and 2.18 ERA in 71 and 69 games, respectively.

The veteran right-hander hasn’t reached the heights of those seasons in the years since, but he’s still a great depth pitching option for the Athletics to bring in this offseason.

Murray is reporting this deal is worth $2 million, with $1.3 million in performance bonuses. It’s a cheap and worthwhile deal for the A’s, as Barlow joins a bullpen in need of extra depth for the 2026 MLB season.