Lincecum to honor late brother

Two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum, who finalized a one-year contract with the Texas Rangers on Tuesday, said he will wear a different number this season in honor of his late brother.

After wearing No. 55 for his entire major league career, Tim Lincecum will switch to 44 with the Texas Rangers in honor of his late older brother. Sean Lincecum's funeral was Saturday, which delayed Tim Lincecum from taking the physical needed to finalize his $1 million, one-year contract with the Texas Rangers. The twotime Cy Young Award winner passed the physical Tuesday and said he will wear the number his brother used as an amateur.

"I always looked up to my brother," Lincecum said. "He was an idol for me. He just had a lot of bad runs with the choices he made in life."

Texas general manager Jon Daniels said the 33-yearold right-hander will be a reliever and could be the Rangers' closer as he attempts to pitch in the big leagues for the first time since 2016.

Jon Jay agrees to 1-year deal with Royals

Outfielder Jon Jay agreed to a $3 million, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, a deal that allows him to earn an additional $1.5 million in performance bonuses.

Jay, who turns 33 on March 15, hit .296 with two homers and 34 RBIs in 141 games last season with the Chicago Cubs, including 13 for 40 (.325) as a pinch hitter. His deal, announced Tuesday, is a large cut from his $8 million salary last year.

Right-hander Jesse Hahn was placed on the 60-day disabled list to open a roster spot. Hahn, acquired from Oakland during the offseason, has a sprained right ulnar collateral ligament. He had Tommy John surgery in 2010 and felt discomfort in his elbow during a start last Thursday.

Nationals send top prospect home for violating curfew

Seth Romero, a top pitching prospect selected by Washington with the 25th overall pick in last year's amateur draft, was sent home from spring training on Monday by the Nationals for violating curfew.

Washington said the lefthander violated team policy but did not go into details. A person familiar with the situation said Romero's girlfriend was at spring training and he stayed out late. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because no announcements were authorized.

Romero was kicked off the team during his final season at the University of Houston. Coach Todd Whitting issued a statement attributing the decision to an unspecified event that followed what the coach said was previous conduct detrimental to the team.

Romero, who turns 22 on April 19, had been training on the minor league side of Nationals camp.