Thomas Ross Stripling (born November 23, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.
He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics.
Stripling played college baseball at Texas A&M University before the Dodgers selected him in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB draft.
[1] In baseball, he did not pitch until a broken leg prior to his senior season in 2008 left him unable to play in the infield, and as a pitcher he was 14–0 with a 1.60 ERA, as in 107 innings he led the Dallas/Fort Worth area with 156 strikeouts.
[1] He also played basketball for the school as a forward, and football as a wide receiver, winning the Texas 5A state title and the national championship.
[18] Stripling became a key member of the bullpen in 2017 and picked up his first save on May 27, 2017, with three scoreless innings of relief against the Chicago Cubs.
After a bullpen session with pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, he developed a hard curveball to add to his arsenal giving him a new look and making him one of the National League's ERA leaders at the break, earning him an All-Star nod for the first time in his career, replacing Miles Mikolas on the team, who was scheduled to pitch the Sunday prior to the All-Star Game.
[18] On August 31, 2020, Stripling was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Kendall Williams and another player to be named later (Ryan Noda).
[24] With the 2020 Toronto Blue Jays, Stripling appeared in five games, compiling a 0–2 record with 6.32 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 15+2⁄3 innings pitched.
[21] On December 13, 2022, Stripling signed a two-year $25 million contract with the San Francisco Giants, with an opt-out after the 2023 season.
[30] On February 2, 2024, the Giants traded Stripling and cash considerations to the Oakland Athletics in exchange for Jonah Cox.
[37] On January 31, 2019, Stripling appeared on Fox Business Network and contributed commentary regarding the markets before fielding questions regarding his major league debut and baseball analytics.