Update 10:50am CDT – The Cubs announced signing RHP Rafael Soriano to a minor league contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Updated 10:59am CDT – According to a report from James Wagner, Rafael Soriano has a prorated base salary of $4.1 million and the deal includes a $4 million incentives package based on games finished and appearances.
Updated 11:38am CDT – According to the Sun-Times, Rafael Soriano will make roughly $2 million base once he is in the big leagues if he stays with the Cubs for half the season. Wittenmyer confirmed the report that Soriano’s contract includes $4 million incentives package. Soriano is expected to need three weeks of preparation time and minor league games before he is added to the roster.
According to a report from the Sun-Times, the Cubs are closing in on a deal with free agent RHP Rafael Soriano.
Gordon Wittenmyer reported Tuesday morning that the Cubs were close to agreeing to terms on a contract with Soriano and the deal could be completed by the end of the day. Soriano has a workout scheduled for Thursday in the Dominican Republic but was expected to sign with one of three teams (Cubs, Blue Jays, Cardinals) before the workout.
The Mariners are the other team still in the mix for Soriano according to the Sun-Times.
If Soriano signs with the Cubs, it would be a minor league contract and he would “make two or three minor league appearances before joining the Cubs bullpen by mid-month.”
• Full Report from the Sun-Times
Updated 10:53am CDT – Rafael Soriano, 35, is 22-28 with 207 saves and a 2.85 ERA (200 ER/630.2 IP) in 585 big league appearances, all but eight in relief, covering 13 seasons with Seattle (2002-06), Atlanta (2007-09), Tampa Bay (2010), the New York Yankees (2011-12) and Washington (2013-14). Over the last three seasons, Soriano has combined to record 117 saves, an average of 39 per season, with a 9-5 record and 2.84 ERA (62 ER/196.1 IP) in 201 relief outings.
The 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-hander primarily served as a set-up man the first seven seasons of his career before saving 27 games for the Braves in 2009. He recorded a career-high 45 saves and was named an A.L. All-Star for Joe Maddon’s Rays in 2010, his first of three seasons with more than 40 saves. Soriano joined the Yankees in 2011 and recorded 23 holds as a set-up man to Mariano Rivera in 2011 and saved 42 games for the Yankees in 2012. He notched 43 saves in 2013 and 32 saves last year with the Nationals.
Soriano went 4-1 with 32 saves and a 3.19 ERA (22 ER/62.0 IP) in 64 relief appearances for the Nationals in 2014. He has turned in a 3.19 ERA or lower in 10 of his 13 seasons. Soriano is a native of San Jose, Dominican Republic.