Report: Nico Hoerner, Cubs agree to 3-year, $35M deal - MLB

CHICAGO — The Chicago Cubs locked up another infielder, agreeing to a three-year, $35 million contract with Nico Hoerner.

A person familiar with the negotiations confirmed the contract to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the move had not been announced. The deal begins with the 2024 season.

Hoerner, who turns 26 in May, is moving back to second base this year after he was the team’s regular shortstop in 2022. The Cubs signed All-Star shortstop Dansby Swanson to a seven-year, $177 million contract in December.

The new deal for Hoerner means the team could have its middle infield in place through the 2026 season.

Hoerner was selected by Chicago in the first round of the 2018 amateur draft out of Stanford University. He made his big league debut the following year, batting .282 with three homers and 17 RBIs in 20 games.

Hoerner is coming off a breakout season, batting .281 with a career-best 10 homers, 55 RBIs and 20 steals in 135 games. He played in a total of 112 games over his first three years in the majors.

Chicago had struggled to re-sign its own players in recent years, trading Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Javier Báez at the 2021 deadline. All-Star outfielder Ian Happ, a first-round pick in the 2015 amateur draft, is eligible for free agency after the upcoming season.

The Cubs host the Milwaukee Brewers on Opening Day.

SAN DIEGO — The scuffling San Diego Padres claimed catcher Gary Sánchez off waivers from the New York Mets.

The two-time All-Star was designated for assignment after playing in three games for the Mets. He went 1 for 6 with three strikeouts and an RBI, looking shaky at times behind the plate.

With the disappointing Padres (24-29) getting meager offensive production at catcher, they hope Sánchez can provide a boost. Austin Nola is batting .131 with three extra-base hits and a paltry .434 OPS in 39 games. His part-time platoon partner, second-stringer Brett Sullivan, is hitting .170 with four extra-base hits and a .482 OPS in 21 games since getting called up from the minors April 16.

Luis Campusano has been on the injured list since April 17 and is expected to be sidelined until around the All-Star break following left thumb surgery.

San Diego is responsible for just over $1 million in salary for Sánchez after assuming his $1.5 million, one-year contract.

The star-studded Padres have lost seven of 11 and are 3-3 on a nine-game East Coast trip. They open a three-game series at Miami.

San Diego becomes the third National League team to take a close look at the 30-year-old Sánchez this season. He spent time in the minors with San Francisco before getting released May 2 and signing a minor league contract a week later with the Mets, who were minus a couple of injured catchers at the time.

After hitting well in a short stint at Triple-A Syracuse, he was promoted to the big leagues May 19. When the Mets reinstated catcher Tomás Nido from the injured list last week, Sánchez was cut.

Sánchez’s best seasons came early in his career with the New York Yankees, where he was runner-up in 2016 AL Rookie of the Year voting and made the AL All-Star team in 2017 and 2019.

He was traded to Minnesota before the 2022 season and batted .205 with 16 homers and 61 RBIs in 128 games last year.

With the Padres, Sánchez could also be a candidate for at-bats at designated hitter, where 42-year-old Nelson Cruz is batting .245 with three homers, 16 RBIs and a .670 OPS, and 37-year-old Matt Carpenter is hitting .174 with four homers, 21 RBIs and a .652 OPS.