Giants trade Stripling to Athletics

The Oakland Athletics acquired veteran right-hander Ross Stripling and cash from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for minor-league outfielder Jonah Cox, the teams announced Friday.

San Francisco is sending $3.25 million in cash to Oakland, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. With the A's now paying the majority of his $12.5-million salary, Stripling becomes the highest-paid player on the majors' lowest payroll.

The 34-year-old endured a rough 2023 campaign after joining the Giants in free agency, putting up a 5.36 ERA, 5.21 FIP, and 1.35 WHIP, along with a 7.1 K/9 rate in only 89 innings. A combination of poor performance and back injuries led to his relegation to the bullpen in September.

Stripling opted into the final year of his $25-million contract early in the offseason.

Stripling gives the rebuilding A's a veteran arm who can pitch in multiple roles to help anchor their young pitching staff. If he's able to bounce back in 2024, Oakland could potentially turn him into additional prospects at this year's trade deadline.

He's also just two years removed from a strong 2022 campaign with the Toronto Blue Jays in which he set career-best marks in ERA (3.01), WHIP (1.02), and innings (134.1) despite not being a full-time starter until mid-June of that year.

Stripling, an All-Star with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018, owns a lifetime 3.96 ERA, 4.08 FIP, and 1.21 WHIP, along with 692 strikeouts in 226 big-league appearances (115 starts).

Cox, the prospect heading to San Francisco, was the Athletics' sixth-round pick out of Oral Roberts in last July's draft. The 22-year-old hit .287/.366/.403 with two homers, 15 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases in 35 games across two minor-league levels last summer. He's primarily played center field as a pro but also saw some time in left field.

This is only the second player-for-player trade made between MLB's two Bay Area rivals in the last 35 years, per Baseball Reference.

Oakland also signed left-hander Alex Wood, who was Stripling's teammate in San Francisco last season, to a one-year contract. His deal is worth $8.5 million and also contains an additional $1 million in performance bonuses, Melissa Lockard of The Athletic reports.

The 33-year-old southpaw posted a 4.33 ERA and 1.43 WHIP in 29 appearances (12 starts) with the Giants last year. Wood, who's also likely to start in Oakland, won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020.

To make room for Stripling and Wood on their 40-man roster, the A's outrighted left-hander Francisco Pérez to Triple-A Las Vegas and designated infielder Jonah Bride for assignment.