Athletics Select Former Baltimore Orioles Starter from Triple-A

A part-time member of the Baltimore Orioles’ 2019 starting rotation is heading back to the Majors with Oakland.

May 26, 2024; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Aaron Brooks (53) throws a pitch against the Houston Astros during the first inning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. / Robert Edwards-USA TODAY Sports

Aaron Brooks, a former member of the Baltimore Orioles’ starting rotation in 2019, is back in the Majors after the Oakland Athletics selected his contract on Sunday.

The Orioles claimed Brooks off waivers from Oakland midway through the 2019 season. In 14 games, 12 of which were starts, he went 4-5 with a 6.18 ERA. He struck out 39 and walked 20 in 59.2 innings.

That was his most significant stint in the Majors, as he started the year with the Athletics and ended it with the Orioles, going 6-8 with a 5.65 ERA in 29 games (18 starts).

Brooks, a right-hander, signed a minor-league deal with the Athletics in February and started the season at Triple-A Las Vegas. Oakland called him up on May 15 and designated him for assignment on June 2. After he cleared waivers with no takers, he returned to Las Vegas on June 4.

In four games (all starts), he is 0-2 with a 5.82 ERA. He has 10 strikeouts and six walks in 21.2 innings.

After his half-season in Baltimore, Brooks turned to the KBO League in Korea and signed with the Kia Tigers. He enjoyed his best season of professional baseball in 2020 as he went 11-4 in 23 starts with a 2.50 ERA and 130 strikeouts. That earned him a $1 million deal with the Tigers in 2021, but he was released in August after traces of marijuana were found in a vape pen he had ordered online.

The Montclair, Calif., native played his college baseball at Cal State San Bernardino and was a ninth-round pick of the Kansas City Royals in 2011. Early, he turned heads with an absurd walk ratio — 1.3 walks per nine innings in his first 393.1 minor league innings.

He made his Major League debut with Kansas City in 2014 and his itinerant career began.

Kansas City traded Brooks and Sean Manaea at the 2015 deadline to Oakland for Ben Zobrist. In February of 2016 the Athletics traded him to the Chicago Cubs. Chicago waived him that August and he was claimed by Milwaukee. The Brewers promoted him for one day, DFA’ed him and Oakland traded for him in late 2018.

After Kia he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in early 2022, made their opening-day roster but was DFA’ed by May. He spent the rest of 2022 with the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate in Louisville and then joined San Diego as a free agent in 2023. He spent all of 2023 with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate in El Paso.

Brooks has a career record of 9-15 with a 6.47 ERA in 56 Major League games, with 32 starts.