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MLB Notebook: Jo Hsi Hsu signs with Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
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Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski - Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Nov 29, 2025, 12:00 ESTUpdated: Nov 29, 2025, 12:02 EST
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One pitcher is off the market.
It seemed that Jo Hsi Hsu could come state side, but it was reported on Friday by Yihusan Wang that Hsu has signed a three-year deal worth $9.6 million USD with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
Last season in the Chinese Professional Baseball League, Hsu posted a 2.05 ERA in 114 innings pitched, with a 28 K% and 3.3 BB%. His fastball reaches the upper-90s, but many big league teams believed Hsu to be a reliever, while teams in Nippon Professional Baseball (Japan) believed he could start. The Toronto Blue Jays reportedly scouted the 25-year-old last season.
The 25-year-old will get three seasons to prove to those big league teams he’s capable of starting. He’s not the only pitcher to sign with an NPB team in recent times, as former Blue Jay Easton Lucas signed with the Hanshin Tigers earlier this week.

Angels in talks to buy out the final year of Anthony Rendon’s contract

Selected sixth overall in the 2011 draft by the Washington Nationals, at one point, Anthony Rendon was one of the best third basemen in baseball. Now, it seems like the final year of his contract will be bought out, and he’ll retire.
From 2013 until 2019 with the Nationals, Rendon slashed .290/.369/.490 with 136 home runs in 3,927 plate appearances. He finished with MVP votes in four different seasons, finishing third in 2019 and winning his second Silver Slugger. His Nationals’ career was capped off by a strong postseason where he slashed .328/.413/.590 with three home runs in 75 plate appearances, helping the organization to win its first World Series in franchise history.
That off-season, Rendon signed a seven-year deal worth $245 million with the Los Angeles Angels. His first season was a successful one, as he slashed .286/.418/.497 with nine home runs in 232 plate appearances for a 152 wRC+, earning MVP votes once again.
But from there, Rendon started to miss games, never getting more than 250 plate appearances in the following four seasons. On top of that, he wasn’t great when he was in the lineup, slashing .231/.329/.336 with 13 home runs in 863 plate appearances for an 89 wRC+ and missing the entirety of the 2025 season.

Brewers worried about payroll

In a The Athletic article written by Ken Rosenthal, Will Sammon, and Katie Woo, they note that the Brewers could once again shave payroll by trading a player.
It’s been speculated all off-season that 29-year-old right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta could be on the move. Last season, the right-handed pitcher had a 2.70 ERA and 3.64 FIP in 176.2 innings pitched, with a 28.2 K% and 9.1 BB%. The Brewers activated the team option earlier this month, meaning that they’ll owe Peralta just $8 million in 2026.
Another player they list as a trade candidate is close Trevor Megill. Last season, the 31-year-old threw 47 innings in 50 games, and had a 2.49 ERA and 2.50 FIP, his second consecutive “good” season. Megill also struck out 31.3% of the batters he faced with an 8.9 BB%. Overall, he picked up 30 saves in 36 opportunities for the team with the best record in baseball. He’s expected to make just over $4 million in arbitration.
Just after the season ended, the Brewers gave Brandon Woodruff a qualifying offer, which he accepted to earn $22.05 million next season. Woodruff has the second-highest payroll on the team, just behind Christian Yelich’s salary of $24.03 million.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Brewers do this off-season.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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