White Sox Sign Anthony Kay to $12M, Two-Year Deal

The Chicago White Sox have agreed to terms on a two-year, $12 million contract with left-handed pitcher Anthony Kay, bringing the 30-year-old back to Major League Baseball after two seasons in Japan, multiple reports confirmed on Wednesday.

Kay, who last pitched in the majors with the New York Mets in October 2023, spent the past two years with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league. There, he posted a 2.53 ERA over 291 2/3 innings in 48 starts, including a 9-6 record and 1.74 ERA across 155 innings this season. He struck out 249 batters while issuing 64 walks, achieving a 54.5 percent ground-ball rate and developing a two-seam fastball that scouts credit for his improved command and effectiveness against right-handed hitters.

The deal calls for Kay to earn $5 million in each of the 2025 and 2026 seasons, with an additional $1.5 million available in incentives. It includes a $10 million mutual option for 2028, accompanied by a $2 million buyout, according to league sources. The agreement is pending a physical.

A first-round pick by the Mets in 2016 out of the University of Connecticut, Kay debuted in the majors with the Toronto Blue Jays in...