The Athletics have signed right-hander Austin Pruitt to a minor league contract, as noted in his MLB.com transactions tracker. Pruitt has been assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas, where he will add some non-roster depth for the team.
Pruitt is already familiar to the A’s, having played for them during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. Over those two years, he logged 103 2/3 innings with a 3.65 ERA. While his strikeout rate was below average at 16.2%, he showed strong control with a 5% walk rate and a ground ball rate of 41.2%, close to the league average.
Throughout his career, Pruitt has maintained a similar profile. He has also played with the Rays, Astros, Marlins, and Rangers, accumulating 315 major league innings with a 4.54 ERA, a 16.6% strikeout rate, a 5.6% walk rate, and a 45.7% ground ball rate.
At the end of last season, Pruitt was removed from Oakland’s roster and subsequently signed a minor league deal with Texas. He was promoted to the Rangers’ roster in mid-April but made only four appearances before being placed on the injured list due to a right knee medial meniscus injury. Although he began a rehab assignment in late June, the Rangers released him in late July rather than reinstating him.
After a few weeks on the open market, Pruitt has returned to a familiar environment with the A’s. With several veterans currently on the injured list—Austin Adams, Scott Alexander, Alex Wood, and Trevor Gott—Pruitt may be called up if the A’s need additional pitching depth. Currently, Ross Stripling and T.J. McFarland are the only active pitchers with more than three years of major league experience.
