Athletics acquire pitchers Alex Wood and Ross Stripling

The Oakland Athletics acquired Alex Wood of Charlotte, North Carolina and Ross Stripling of Bluebell, Pennsylvania on Friday according to the Canadian Press. Wood came to terms on a one-year contract worth $8.5 million from the San Francisco Giants, and Stripling was traded from the San Francisco Giants to the Oakland Athletics for minor league outfielder Jonah Cox.

Alex Wood

Wood, a lefthanded pitcher, joins his fifth Major League Baseball team. He has previously pitched for the Atlanta Braves (2013 to 2015), the Los Angeles Dodgers (2015 to 2018 and 2020), the Cincinnati Reds (2019) and the San Francisco Giants (2021 to 2023).

This past season, Wood had a record of five wins and five losses with one hold, and an earned run average of 4.33. In 97 2/3 innings pitched and 29 games, he gave up 98 hits, 47 earned runs, nine home runs, and 42 walks, to go along with 74 strikeouts and a WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) of 1.43. The hold came in a 8-6 Giants win over the Philadelphia Phillies on August 23. Wood pitched a third of an inning and gave up two walks and one strikeout.

All-Star in 2017

While with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017, Wood was a National League All-Star. In 27 games, he had a record of 16 wins and three losses with an earned run average of 2.72. During 152 1/3 innings pitched, Wood gave up 123 hits, 46 earned runs, 15 home runs and 38 walks, to go along with 151 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.06.

Ross Stripling

Stripling joins his fourth Major League Baseball team. He has previously pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers (2016 to 2020), the Toronto Blue Jays (2022), and the San Francisco Giants (2023). It was a rather poor 2023 season for Stripling as he had a record of zero wins and five losses with an earned run average of 5.36. While with the Dodgers in 2018, Stripling was a National League All-Star. He had a record of eight wins and six losses with an earned run average of 3.02.