UNDATED (AP) — Jake Arrieta is returning to the Chicago Cubs, after agreeing to a one-year, $6 million contract that includes $1 million in performance bonuses, according to a person familiar with the deal.
The 34-year-old Arrieta won the NL Cy Young Award with the 2015 Cubs and helped Chicago win the 2016 World Series, the team’s first championship since 1908. He went 68-31 with a 2.73 ERA in 128 starts over five years in his first stint with the team before spending the last three years with the Phillies.
In other baseball news:
— Left-hander Martín Pérez and the Red Sox have finalized a $5 million, one-year contract. Pérez went 3-5 with a 4.50 ERA in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, when he was the only starter in Boston’s rotation to make all 12 of his scheduled starts.
— A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that the Blue Jays have agreed to a minor league contract to keep 2015 All-Star second baseman Joe Panik. The 30-year-old hit .225 with one homer and seven RBIs in 120 at-bats during the pandemic-shortened season, his first with Toronto.
— Mike Soroka has argued his salary arbitration case with the Atlanta Braves today. Soroka argued for a raise from $583,500 to $2.8 million, while the team maintained the right-hander should be paid $2.1 million. The 23-year-old Soroka was 0-1 with a 3.95 ERA in three starts last season before tearing his right Achilles tendon while pitching on Aug. 3.
— Well-traveled right-handed reliever Dylan Floro has been traded by the Dodgers to the Marlins for left-handed reliever Alex Vesia and pitching prospect Kyle Hurt. Floro went 3-0 with a 2.59 ERA in 25 games last year.
— Free agent infielder Brock Holt has agreed to a minor league contract with the Rangers that includes an invitation to big league spring training. Holt will get $1.75 million this year if added to the 40-man roster.
— Baseball’s Hall of Fame has canceled its traditional outdoor induction ceremony for the second straight summer because of the pandemic. Instead, there will be an indoor, televised event for Derek Jeter and other members of the Class of 2020 being honored. No new inductees were chosen for this year’s class.
— Major League Baseball has revamped its spring training exhibition schedule because of the pandemic, cutting travel for Florida-based teams in an effort to minimize virus risks. College baseball teams were dropped from the revised schedules because they are not subject to major league testing protocols. Also eliminated were split-squad games, which are traditionally used in the first half of the exhibition season to allow evaluation of more players.
