Gee was reportedly pursuing opportunities to play overseas at the beginning of January, but he'll call it a career after evidently having a chance of heart. He last pitched in the big leagues in 2017 across stops with Minnesota and Texas, posting a 3.47 ERA and 1.40 WHIP with 41 punchouts across 49.1 frames. Gee spent the first six seasons of his career with the Mets and will finish with a 4.09 ERA in 853.2 frames over eight years in the majors.

Gee's contract will be between $1.5-to-$2 million for this upcoming season, pending a physical. According to Rosenthal, Gee's plan is to re-establish himself as a starting pitcher, which he wasn't able to consistently demonstrate in 2017, and then return to the majors the following season. During 49.1 innings last year, the 31-year-old posted a 3.47 ERA and 1.40 WHIP while sporting a 41:15 K:BB during his time with the Twins and Rangers.

Manager Paul Molitor decided he had seen enough from Gee in a starting role after the right-hander failed to escape the third inning in his most recent outing Friday against the Royals, conceding five runs on six hits and three walks. Gee will be replaced in the rotation by Aaron Slegers, who will be recalled from Triple-A Rochester in advance of Wednesday's contest.

The Twins were getting some decent results out of Gee while their rotation deals with multiple injuries, but the other shoe finally dropped Friday night. Gee posted just one season with an ERA under 4.00 when he pitched for the Mets, and there was little reason to believe his improvement in 2017 through just 35.2 innings was real. This start alone pushed Gee's ERA up from 3.58 to 4.46. The Twins, however, may have little choice but to keep relying on him as a starter despite his inadequacy for the role.