UNDATED (AP) — Anthony Rizzo is cutting off talks with the Chicago Cubs on a new contract and is prepared to play the season as free agency looms after the World Series.
The three-time All-Star first baseman has a $16.5 million salary this season and set a deadline of opening day for a new agreement.
Rizzo has a .271 career average with 229 homers and 753 RBIs in 10 major league seasons, but he is coming off a subpar year.
Elsewhere in the majors:
— The Twins have signed right-hander Randy Dobnak to a five-year, $9.25 million contract that includes three club options to extend and increase the deal with the overachieving former ride-share driver. Dobnak went 6-4 with a 4.05 ERA in 10 starts last season, before hitting a slump and being sent to the team’s alternate training site.
— The Cardinals plan to start the season Thursday in Cincinnati with pitchers Kwang Hyun Kim, Dakota Hudson and Miles Mikolas on the injured list along with outfielder Harrison Bader. Hudson always planned to begin on the season on the injured list as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. Kim is dealing with a back injury, Mikolas with a sore shoulder and Bader has a strained right foreman that could keep him out a month.
