MLB 2022 | Soler not opting-out with Marlins, Yordan finalist for the MVP Award, Gurriel's injury

Major League Baseball (MLB) Cuban Players News for the 2022 offseason. A compendium from several MLB sources

Jorge Soler. (Photo: Mark Brown/Getty Images)

Nov 8, 2022

Craig Mish of SportsGrid reports that Jorge Soler will not opt-out of his contract with the Marlins.

This decision doesn't come as much of a shock. Soler will earn $15 million this upcoming season with the Marlins and has the ability to opt-out or exercise a $9 million option for the 2024 season. The 30-year-old slugger was limited to just 72 games last year in his Marlins debut, posting a lackluster .695 OPS with just 13 home runs in 306 plate appearances. He possesses stratospheric over-the-fence power and could be poised for a rebound campaign, if he stays healthy.

Yordan Álvarez, Aaron Judge, and Shohei Ohtani are the three finalists for the 2022 American League MVP Award.

It should be noted that these are regular season awards and that all BBWAA ballots were submitted a month ago. The winners will be formally announced next week. Álvarez seems assured of a third-place finish here and Ohtani will likely come in second. Judge has the narrative (and the offensive numbers) on his side after setting a new single-season AL home run record this year with 62. He also led all MLB hitters in RBI with 131 and posted an overall .311/.425/.686 batting line for the American League East champs.

Yuli Gurriel has been diagnosed with a sprained MCL in his right knee.

Gurriel was removed from the Astros' World Series roster prior to Saturday's series-clinching victory over the Phillies, but told reporters afterwards that he wants to play next season and would like to return to Houston. It's possible that the 38-year-old veteran first baseman, who will be a free agent this offseason, decides to call it a career. However, it sounds like he's planning to return for the 2023 campaign.