The Cubs will sign Hisanori Takahashi to a minor-league deal. The Pirates claimed Takahashi off waivers in late August, just as the collapse was starting to turn into a full-blown debacle, and he pitched only 8.1 innings for them, chucking 88 MPH fastballs, allowing a bunch of runs, and not getting into many close games. He's now 37 and was a free agent at the end of the season, so it's no surprise that he won't return. He did strike out 9.3 batters per nine innings last season, though, so we probably haven't quite seen the last of him.
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