San Francisco Giants pitcher Carlos Rodón reportedly is "interested" in returning to Chicago to pitch for the Cubs, NBC Sports Chicago's David Kaplan reported.
"And guess who else is interested in the Cubs? Carlos Rodón. Yes. Loved pitching in Chicago. Knows that the Cubs are a team with some players coming out of the system, and they need a top-of-the-rotation arm," Kaplan said on his YouTube show "reKap."
Chicago has a special spot in Rodón's heart. He grew up in the White Sox' farm system (drafted by the Sox with the third overall pick in 2014) and pitched for the club for seven seasons.
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In his last season with the Sox, he took off. Rodón chalked up a 2.37 ERA in 24 starts, taking home 13 pitching wins to five losses. He struck out 185 batters and walked 36 on his way to his first All-Star selection and landed fifth in the AL Cy Young voting.
In that season, he also threw the franchise's 20th no-hitter. In the game against the Guardians, he was two outs from a perfect game until a hit-by-pitch ruined his bid.
Despite his 2021 heroics, the Sox inked Lance Lynn to a two-year, $38 million deal, essentially showing Rodón the door to free agency. In turn, Rodón closed a deal with the Giants for two years, $44 million.
One game after the All-Star break this summer, Rodón reached his inning cap, meaning he can opt of his deal and head back into free agency next offseason. With the Cubs depleted of stardom in their starting rotation, one could believe that Rodón would want to reconnect with his baseball career's native land.
San Francisco Giants
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The Cubs could use the heart-melting sales tactic to pitch Rodón with a long-term deal in one of the cities he loves most -- Chicago.
“I’ll say this: Chicago has a dear spot in my heart,” Rodón said to NBC Sports Chicago in late July. “It’s the city where my wife and I kind of grew up together, became adults, where we had our two children."