Athletics Claim Elvis Alvarado

2:40pm: The A’s have now officially announced the claim. Righty Anthony Maldonado has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

2:25pm: The Athletics are claiming right-hander Elvis Alvarado off waivers from the Pirates, reports Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Bucs designated him for assignment earlier this week to sign infielder/outfielder Adam Frazier. The A’s have a full 40-man roster and will need to make a corresponding move to complete this claim.

Alvarado, 26 next month, has yet to make his major league debut. He has pitched in the minors for the Nationals, Mariners, Tigers and Marlins over the years without getting the call to the big leagues. He hit free agency and the Pirates somewhat surprisingly gave him a roster spot in December, signing him to a split deal.

The Bucs were presumably willing to give him that roster spot based on a big uptick in strikeouts in 2024, though it also came with some control issues. He tossed 48 1/3 Triple-A innings in the Marlins’ system last year, allowing 2.79 earned runs per nine. He struck out 33.2% of batters faced but also gave out free passes at a massive 17.8% rate.

That was in stark contrast to his previous track record. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 137 2/3 innings on the farm with a 4.58 ERA, 21.8% strikeout rate and 10.3% walk rate. Per Brooks Baseball, he has been increasing his slider usage over the past two years. In 2023, that was combined with fewer four-seamers and more sinkers. He flipped that in 2024, dropping his sinker usage and getting the four-seamer back up to previous levels.

The specifics of Alvarado’s split deal weren’t reported but such deals often feature a high minor league salary, in part to dissuade other clubs from putting in a claim and/or to stop the player from electing free agency. In this case, it seems the A’s were intrigued by the same minor league numbers that interested the Pirates, so they have grabbed Alvarado to add some pitching depth.