The A’s have spent this season patching holes wherever they can find them, and the latest waiver pickups may end up meaning more than the usual midseason churn.
With injuries and underperformance piling up, Oakland has leaned hard on the waiver wire to keep its bullpen afloat. That’s the backdrop for the arrivals of right-hander Scott Blewett and southpaw Drew Rom, two arms the club has added in recent days and could now be asked to handle bigger jobs.
Blewett came over from St. Louis after being designated for assignment, with the A’s sending cash considerations to land him.
The 30-year-old had logged just two innings for the Cardinals this season, but he didn’t allow a run there, and he’s been effective in Oakland as well. In 9.2 innings with the A’s, he has allowed three runs for a 2.79 ERA.
If you fold in his scoreless work in St. Louis, he owns a 2.31 ERA on the year.
His profile is a little unusual. Blewett’s fastball sits at an average of 95.1 miles per hour, but his 93rd percentile extension helps the pitch play up.
He’s also limited hard contact, with a barrel rate of just 2.6%. The result has been a soft-throwing righty who has shown enough to look like a useful middle relief option.
Rom arrived just days ago on a waiver claim from the Milwaukee Brewers, and he’s barely had time to settle in - only 13 pitches in an A’s uniform so far. Still, the season line is encouraging. He has a 2.70 ERA, and his strikeout rate tells the bigger story: 40.7% of batters faced.
The contrast with Blewett is clear. Rom’s fastball is on the slower side, and he doesn’t get much extension, but his stuff has played. He’s used that mix to miss bats in bunches, and the A’s will gladly take that kind of swing-and-miss in a bullpen that has struggled to find much success.
For a club that has already seen Brent Rooker need surgery and miss the remainder of the 2026 season, while Shea Langeliers has also been sidelined for the rest of the year, every healthy arm matters. In a season that’s gone sideways, these waiver claims could still become important pieces.
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