MLB Player News

Rodon signed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Giants on Friday which includes an opt-out after the first season, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

The deal places Rodon in one of the best possible landing spots for any pitcher, as the Giants play in a pitcher-friendly park and have earned a reputation for getting the most out of their starters in recent years. That said, Rodon didn't seem to need much help making the most of his talents in 2021, as he's coming off a season in which he rode a 34.6 percent strikeout rate to a 2.37 ERA. Health is easily his most significant question mark, as he's battled arm troubles throughout his career and was used very cautiously by the White Sox down the stretch last season while he managed shoulder trouble.

Perez agreed to a one-year, $4 million contract with the Rangers on Friday, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

Perez had his $6 million team option for 2022 declined by the Red Sox in November, and he'll now join the Rangers with the transaction freeze lifted. The 30-year-old appeared in 36 games (22 starts) for Boston last season and had a 4.74 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and 97:36 K:BB over 114 innings. The veteran lefty could have a spot in Texas' starting rotation with a decent showing in spring training.

Suarez may not be ready for Opening Day due to visa issues, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Suarez was excellent across multiple roles for the Phillies in 2021, and he spent part of the season as the team's closer. However, he ended the campaign in the rotation and completed at least six innings in six of his last eight appearances while posting an excellent 1.24 ERA in that span. Reputable Phillies prospect analyst Matt Winkelman attributed this report to Gelb, and if Suarez's absence does ultimately stretch into the regular season it will leave the Phillies with a shorthanded rotation as Zach Eflin (knee) is also likely to be sidelined to begin the campaign.

Glasnow's (elbow) agent, Joel Wolfe, said in late February that his client has began a throwing program, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Due to the MLB lockout, Glasnow is unable to train with the Rays or have his rehab monitored by team doctors, so updates from the pitchers and his agent regarding where he stands in his recovery from his Tommy John surgery may be all the news that fantasy players will have available until labor peace is reached. Even though Glasnow's Aug. 4 procedure to address a partially torn UCL was characterized as more of a hybrid surgery that could shorten his recovery timeline compared to typically Tommy John cases, he's still expected to miss most, if not all, of the 2022 season.

Faedo (elbow) began throwing bullpen sessions Jan. 11 and expects to be ready to pitch in games by the middle of March, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Faedo should ramp up the intensity of his bullpen sessions and graduate to facing hitters in live batting practice over the next week or so before completing his rehab program following December 2020 Tommy John surgery. The Tigers still view Faedo as a candidate to fill out a rotation spot at Double-A Erie or Triple-A Toledo in 2022, but he may not be fully stretched out to handle a starter's workload by the time the minor-league season begins in early April. Even so, Faedo shouldn't face significant restrictions for long, especially if he incurs no setbacks in the final stages of his rehab.

Kim signed Monday with the Korea Baseball Organization's SSG Landers on a four-year, $12.3 million contract, Jee-ho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency reports.

After a two-year stint in the majors with the Cardinals, the 33-year-old Kim will return to his home country for what will presumably be the remainder of his playing career. Though Kim made good on the Cardinals' two-year, $8 million investment by submitting a 3.46 ERA across 145.2 innings, his advanced age and underwhelming peripheral numbers (9.1 K-BB%, 48.1 GB%) might have made it difficult for him to secure a significant commitment from an MLB team on the open market this offseason. Kim's shaky outlook along with MLB's ongoing lockout were likely motivating factors in him returning to the Landers, the team with whom he spent 13 seasons before making the jump to St. Louis.

According to Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, Kirby's changeup has emerged as the top weapon in his deep arsenal.

On top of the 96-mph fastball, watch for Kirby's changeup to keep lefties off balance. Kirby stated the changeup will be "a big weapon" that improves to his arsenal. He noted that he's looking for the changeup to dive off the plate with a spin direction of 2:30 to 3 o'clock. The Mariners plan to be careful with Kirby's innings in 2022 with a potential workload of around 140 innings after 67.2 in 2021 across two levels. In Kirby's minor-league career, he has a 2.48 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 28.9 K% and 4.1 BB% in 90.2 innings.

Overton (shoulder) drew the start in an intrasquad game Thursday during the Reds' minor-league camp, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The news affirms that Overton is fully healthy after he concluded the 2021 season on the Pirates' injured list due to a right shoulder strain. Pittsburgh later outrighted Overton off its 40-man roster in November before he signed with Cincinnati on a minor-league deal. Overton should get the chance to stick around with the big club for spring training whenever the MLB lockout ends, but the 28-year-old doesn't look like a realistic candidate to win a spot on the Reds' Opening Day roster.

Sanchez is taking longer than expected to recover from July shoulder surgery and isn't expected back before midseason, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

Heyman's report denied rumors that Sanchez is dealing with an entirely separate injury, but the short-term prognosis on the right-hander's health still doesn't seem to be good. The 23-year-old's inability to meet with team trainers during the lockout undoubtedly isn't helping his progress, though there have also been suggestions that Sanchez wasn't closely following the team's rehab plan. He's still young, so it's certainly possible he eventually gets healthy and lives up to his considerable potential, but Sanchez's fantasy value for the 2022 season takes a big hit with the news that he'll potentially be unavailable for at least half the campaign.

Zulueta (knee) reported to the Blue Jays' minor-league spring training camp at full health after missing the majority of the 2021 season with a torn ACL, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

After signing with the Blue Jays as an amateur free agent in 2019, Zulueta wasn't cleared to make his professional debut until last season while he continued to recover from Tommy John surgery. In a cruel twist of fate, he tore his ACL in his lone start with Low-A Dunedin last year, once again robbing him of some meaningful development time. Fortunately for Zulueta, he seems to have made a full recovery from the knee procedure. Matheson notes that the 24-year-old's fastball has been checking in at around 96 miles per hour during his throwing sessions this week, down only a few ticks from his peak of 99 mph last spring. Zulueta is expected to resume facing live hitters Friday for the first time since May 2021.