Starting pitcher Ervin Santana has agreed with the Chicago White Sox on a minor league deal, the team announced Saturday.
If Santana makes the team, his base salary will be $4.3 million, sources told ESPN.
The 36-year-old Santana, who won 16 games for the Twins in 2017, missed the bulk of last season after having unexpected surgery on his right middle finger in February. He was reinstated on July 25 and went 0-1 with an 8.03 ERA in 24 2/3 innings over five starts with Minnesota before being shut down again with problems in the same finger.
Santana has had trouble with the digit before and had an X-ray and MRI after the 2017 season, when doctors determined there was no injury to the tendon. He was treated with an injection at the time. The injury resurfaced later during the offseason, and a doctor's recommendation was surgery. The procedure to the joint of the finger is a capsular release/debridement. The Twins said the injury stems from wear and tear, not one acute event.
Santana was an All-Star in 2017, going 16-8 with a 3.28 ERA in 211 1/3 innings over 33 starts. He led the majors with five complete games and three shutouts. He started the AL wild-card game, which the Twins lost at Yankee Stadium.
Over the 2016 and 2017 seasons, Santana went 23-19 in 63 starts with a 3.32 ERA, seven complete games and four shutouts.
