Yankees reach 6-year deal with Rodón (source)

Carlos Rodón has opted out of the final year on his two-year, $44 million contract with the Giants and is now a free agent. MLB.com is tracking the latest rumors surrounding the left-hander.

Read all about Rodón here.

Dec. 15: Rodón, Yankees reach 6-year deal (source)
Rodón and the Yankees agreed on Thursday to a six-year, $162 million contract, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. More >

Dec. 14: Cardinals out on Rodón?
The Cardinals recently filled their catching vacancy by signing Willson Contreras to a five-year, $87.5 million contract to become the heir to Yadier Molina. With that settled, there were rumors St. Louis was interested in possibly adding Rodón to a rotation currently featuring Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas and Jack Flaherty.

But according to The Athletic's Katie Woo (subscription required), the Cards are "unlikely" to "shell out the years and money Rodón is coveting at this time." Rodón is reportedly seeking a seven-year deal worth more than $100 million.

Dec. 13: Yankees, Rodón facing 'sizeable gap' in talks (report)
The Yankees' initial offer reportedly underwhelmed Rodón's camp, according to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman.

Rodón's demands have not moved from the seven-plus years, $30 million per year figure reported previously. The parties are expected to continue negotiations, with the Yankees reportedly "motivated to bridge the gap" between them.

The Cardinals and Twins, both previously linked to Rodón, remain in the picture, while the Giants' involvement in Rodón's market may be over following the 13-year, $350 million deal the club reportedly reached with shortstop Carlos Correa on Tuesday.

Dec. 12: Yankees 'serious' about pursuit of Rodón (report)
The Yankees are reportedly preparing to extend a formal offer to Rodón by Tuesday, per MLB Network insider Jon Heyman.

Rodón is still thought to be seeking a deal in the neighborhood of seven years and $200 million. Recent reports have suggested that the Yankees have been hesitant to extend an offer matching the 30-year-old's desired contract length, but the club remains "serious and hopeful" about ongoing negotiations.

Dec. 11: A 'mystery team' appears in Rodón sweepstakes
So, which teams are going after Carlos Rodón, the best starting pitcher remaining on the free-agent market?

The Yankees are heavily involved and reportedly preparing to make an offer to the left-hander. The Twins, Orioles, Red Sox and Dodgers have also been linked to Rodón.

But wait -- there's more! According to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, there is a mystery team involved.

But it looks like the mystery has already been solved. Heyman adds the club is believed to be the Cardinals, who have only two starters under control beyond 2023 -- Dakota Hudson and Steven Matz.

However, will St. Louis be willing to pay Rodón's desired price? He is seeking "a minimum of seven years on a $100 million-plus deal," sources told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required).

In franchise history, St. Louis has handed out only two contracts worth more than $85 million to free agents, and one of them came during the Winter Meetings when the Cards inked catcher Wilson Contreras to a five-year, $87.5 million pact.

Dec. 9: Rodón looking for 7-year deal (report)
The sheer size of some of the contracts handed out this week has been amazing. Eleven years for Trea Turner. Eleven years for Xander Bogaerts. Eight years for Brandon Nimmo (per sources).

With the cost and commitment for top-tier free agents increasing, perhaps it's no surprise that arguably the No. 1 pitcher on the market, Carlos Rodón, has reportedly upped his demands to interested clubs. He "is seeking a minimum of seven years on a $100 million-plus deal," sources told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Brendan Kuty of NJ.com previously reported that Rodón was seeking six years with an average annual value around $30 million per year in his talks with teams. Slusser writes that increased contract length might scare the Giants off from re-signing the left-handed ace.

So who will go the extra mile for Rodón? MLB.com's Mark Feinsand believes it will be the Yankees.

"I think they need another big-time pitcher to put behind [Gerrit] Cole," Feinsand said during Friday's edition of High Heat. "A lefty at Yankee Stadium is always a thing they like. If you go Cole, Rodón, Nestor Cortes, [Luis] Severino, you're in good shape. They need a guy like that to bring in. So, I think he's the next move."

Dec. 8: Do Yanks have inside track on Rodón?
With Aaron Judge locked up on a long-term deal, the Yankees' top priority this offseason has been met, but according to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman in an article for the New York Post, the Yanks could be the team best positioned to land the remaining frontline starter on the free-agent market.

Heyman writes that the thought in the Yankees' front office is that Rodón "desires to be in New York, or at least east," and the team that could be New York's major competitor for the 30-year-old left-hander is the club he pitched for last season, the Giants. San Francisco, however, may be preoccupied with trying to land superstar shortstop Carlos Correa, and as Heyman notes, "the opening is there for the Yankees."

Dec. 8: Could Dodgers, Red Sox emerge as serious Rodón suitors?
With the Rangers and Mets likely out of the mix and the Twins waiting on Carlos Correa’s decision, the Yankees have emerged as a serious contender to sign Rodón, but not much else is known about his market coming out of the Winter Meetings.

MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi shed some light on that Thursday, naming the Dodgers and Red Sox as two potential clubs that could make serious pursuits of the free-agent lefty. Morosi went as far as saying Rodón’s overall guarantee could end up in the $200 million range.

“There are still some really high-end teams, some of the biggest spending clubs in the sport, who still need pitching -- specifically, the Los Angeles Dodgers,” Morosi said. “They’re one team that we know was involved in the Jacob deGrom conversation, the Justin Verlander conversation. They have not yet addressed that need that they have in the starting rotation.

“I would also add this … the inability of the Red Sox to sign Xander Bogaerts; as we’re looking at how this may or may not make sense at the end of the day, if the Red Sox can pivot and bring in Carlos Rodón to address what is now a decidedly substandard starting rotation, then at least the inability to sign Bogaerts would have some redeeming value. Right now in New England a lot of people are waking up and there’s great consternation there in Red Sox Nation. The only way, I think, that it would make some sense and put a positive spin on things, is if the Red Sox find a way to sign Carlos Rodón.”