MLB Rumors: 3 Suitors For Carlos Rodon

He bet on himself in 2022. After injury concerns plagued his free agency last winter, Carlos Rodon took a two-year contract from the San Francisco Giants with an opt-out. All he did was put up his second straight All-Star season, earning himself a shot at a much bigger and more extensive contract this offseason.

The 29-year-old should be able to match the 5-year, $100M+ deals that Robbie Ray and Kevin Gausman got from the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays respectively last offseason. 

Let's check out the top three suitors for Rodon this time around:

San Francisco Giants

Rodon certainly enjoyed playing in the pitcher-friendly Oracle Park, posting a 2.88 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, and a whopping 237 strikeouts in 178 innings, for a 12.0 K/9. And although Rodon is opting out of his $22M deal for next year, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi says "there is mutual interest" between the team and Rodón on coming to terms on a long-term contract.

And as for those injury concerns? Forget about it—Rodon started a career-best 31 games. 

The only obstacle would seem to be the Giants' penchant for avoiding giving out long-term contracts to pitchers. As noted by Marc Delucci at si.com, the Giants have never signed a pitcher to a contract of greater than three years or worth more than $50M. So, yeah, there's that.

Chicago Cubs

According to ESPN Chicago's David Kaplan, the Cubs plan to spend big this offseason and Rodon definitely "piques their interest." Add to that the fact that Rodon is fond of the city of Chicago after he spent his first seven years in the majors with the Chicago White Sox. "[Rodon] loved pitching in Chicago, knows that the Cubs are a team with players coming out of the system. They need a top-of-the-rotation arm," said Kaplan.

The big question here is does Rodon really want to go to a rebuilding team? In a hitter-friendly ballpark? 

Minnesota Twins

There was a report at the trade deadline from SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson that the Twins not only had interest in trading for Rodon if the Giants would have moved him in August, but also that the Twins “were right there” in trying to sign Rodon last winter as a free agent.

They could make another run once again this offseason. 

Photo: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports