A's Decline Drew Rucinski's Club Option

When the Oakland A's signed Drew Rucinski last December, he was a low-risk addition with some upside after dominating the KBO for the past few seasons. His return to the Majors didn't go quite as expected, as he dealt with a dip in velocity, averaging 89 miles per hour on his fastball, and ultimately needed season-ending back surgery. The surgery was done by Dr. Watkins Jr. in Los Angeles, who performed a decompression and L5 - S1 fusion without complications. 

Rucinski missed the start of the season with a hamstring strain that kept him out of action until the end of April. He made dour starts with the A's, totaling 18 innings pitched with a 9.00 ERA and a 2.28 WHIP. 

Before the season, Rucinski was viewed as a potential workhorse, throwing between 177 and 193 innings in each of his four seasons with the NC Dinos. 

Given the season that he had in 2023, the A's have reportedly declined Rucinski's team option for 2024, which was expected. The contract he signed last December was for $3 million with a $5 million team option. Given his track record overseas, the deal made sense. Take a small financial risk for a team that could use some stability, and if it pans out then he's locked up for the following season as well. 

It's unclear what Rucinski's status will be for Spring Training, but if he would like to continue pitching, there could be a team willing to take a chance on him on a minor league deal this offseason.