A's sign former San Francisco Giants lefty

A's add another former Giants pitcher

The Oakland A's announced that they have signed left-handed reliever Scott Alexander to a one-year deal. To make room for Alexander on the roster, the A's also placed starter Ken Waldichuk on the 60-day IL. Waldichuk has been dealing with a flexor tendon strain and a UCL ligament sprain since the season ended. 

Martín Gallegos reported from spring training that the starter has been cleared to play catch and should be throwing off a mound soon. If all goes well, he'll be starting bullpens at the end of camp, which would make him unavailable to begin the season with the A's.

As for the A's new addition, Alexander is entering his age 34 season, and much like newcomers Alex Wood and Ross Stripling, he has previously pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. Last year he held a 4.66 ERA across the bay in 48 1/3 innings pitched, but he has solid command of his pitches, which is something that the A's have been after with all of their big-league additions.

Alexander has a career 3.29 ERA and is an effective ground ball pitcher. Last season he ranked in the 98th percentile with a 61.8% ground ball rate, in addition to the 94th in barrel rate and 83rd in hard-hit percentage. He is a solid veteran addition to this roster and becomes a late-inning option for the A's. 

The big question isn't where he'll fit on the 26-man roster, but who will be left off of it. Earlier today we talked about five A's players that are out of options heading into 2024, and two of them are potential left-handers in the bullpen in Sean Newcomb and Kyle Muller. 

Newcomb signed with the A's for one year and $1 million, so it probably won't end up being him. That said, he is recovering from two off-season knee surgeries, so we'll have to see how he does in camp. 

Muller was part of the return in the Sean Murphy deal, but struggled to ERAs over seven in both the majors and the minors last season. 

The A's are filled with right-handed pitchers, so letting one lefty go through waivers may not be the path they choose. Oakland has a total of five lefties on the 40-man in JP Sears, Wood, Newcomb, Alexander, and Muller. Francisco Pérez and Easton Lucas are the only other upper-level southpaws available at the moment. 

It's possible the A's could leave off one of their right-handers that has options and roll with three left-handers in the bullpen. Both Zach Jackson and Dany Jiménez have three options remaining.