Scott A. Barlow is a Major League Baseball pitcher who currently pitches for the Kansas City Royals. In 2018, he made his MLB debut.
Barlow’s family moved from Connecticut to California during his freshman year of high school so that he could play baseball all year and gain greater exposure to professional scouts.
In Santa Clarita, California, he attended Golden Valley High School.
Barlow was drafted in the sixth round of the 2011 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Rather than attending Fresno State, he signed with the Dodgers.
Next to his signing, Barlow made his professional debut with the AZL Dodgers the following year, pitching 1.2 innings and allowing five earned runs.
He had Tommy John surgery in 2012 and missed the entire season. In 2013, he returned to pitch for the Ogden Raptors, posting a 4-3 record with a 6.20 ERA in 15 starts.
He pitched for the Great Lakes Loons in 2014, going 6-7 with a 4.50 ERA in 23 games (21 starts), and the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes in 2015, going 8-3 with a 2.52 ERA in 14 games (13 starts).
He also pitched for the Great Lakes Loons and the Oklahoma City Dodgers, pitching one game apiece.
Barlow had a 4-7 record with a 3.98 ERA and 1.42 WHIP in 24 games (23 starts) for the Tulsa Drillers in 2016, then a combined 7-6 record and 3.29 ERA in 26 starts for Tulsa and Oklahoma City in 2017.
After the 2017 season, Barlow became a free agent and signed a major league deal with the Royals.
He started the season with the Omaha Storm Chasers.
In April 2018, the Royals promoted Barlow three times to the major leagues; the first two occasions, he was sent back to Triple-A without making an appearance.
Barlow made his MLB debut on April 30, pitching in relief against the Boston Red Sox, following his third call-up on April 28.
Barlow was named to the Royals’ Opening Day roster in 2019.
On April 17, he recorded his first major league saves by pitching the final out in a 4-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
Barlow pitched in a league-high 32 games for the 2020 Kansas City Royals, posting a 2–1 record with a 4.20 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 30 innings pitched.
Barlow avoided salary arbitration by signing a $2.4 million contract with the Royals on March 22, 2022.