ARLINGTON, Texas — Max Scherzer, 39, a three-time Cy Young Award winner, had surgery for a herniated disk in his lower back and will miss a significant portion of next season for the texas Rangers.

Scherzer had surgery Thursday after injections and other less-invasive treatments didn’t relieve the pain. He is due $43,333,334 in the final season of a $130 million, three-year contract he signed with the New York Mets.

Scherzer was removed from the roster during the World Series because of back discomfort. General Manager Chris Young said Friday the team is hopeful Scherzer will be fully healed and recovered by June or July.

Scherzer said in a statement released by the team the back pain got worse after he returned to his offseason home in Florida, and that he got the diagnosis of a herniated disk.

“Getting this procedure done now will give me the best chance to pitch as much as possible for the Rangers in 2024,” Scherzer said. “I look forward to putting in the rehab work and getting back on the mound next summer.”

GUARDIANS: Catcher Austin Hedges and the team finalized a $4 million, one-year contract.

Hedges, who played in Cleveland from 2020-22, is solid defensively and a clubhouse leader. The Guardians missed his presence last season and especially having him as an influence for younger players.

Hedges finished last season winning a World Series with Texas. He got one at-bat against Arizona and struck out.

ORIOLES: A long-term agreement between the team and the Maryland Stadium Authority to extend a lease at Camden Yards is moving forward for a vote by state officials next week.

The agreement is scheduled to go before the Maryland Stadium Authority on Monday in Baltimore at the warehouse next to the ballpark. The state’s Board of Public Works, a three-member board chaired by the governor, also is scheduled to meet there later that day.

The Orioles’ lease at Camden Yards, which is owned by the state of Maryland, expires at the end of the year. In September, the team dramatically announced a 30-year deal to stay at the ballpark — a message to that effect appeared on the scoreboard in the middle of a game the night the team clinched the AL East. The next day, Gov. Wes Moore’s office released details of a memorandum of understanding involving Moore, the team and the Maryland Stadium Authority.

ROYALS: Kansas City made a pair of free-agent moves, agreeing to a $32 million, two-year contract with pitcher Michael Wacha and a $13 million, two-year deal with outfielder Hunter Renfroe.

Wacha’s deal calls for a $16 million salary next year and contains a $16 million player option for 2025. Renfroe will get a $5.5 million salary next season, and the agreement includes a $7.5 million player option for 2025 with a $1 million buyout.

YANKEES-PIRATES: Outfielder Billy McKinney was traded from New York to Pittsburgh for $500,000 in 2023 international signing bonus pool allocation, six days after he agreed to a minor league contract with the Yankees.

New York had an excess of outfielders after acquiring Juan Soto from San Diego and Alex Verdugo from Boston last week.

McKinney, 29, hit .227 with six homers and 14 RBI in 48 games this season with the Yankees, and batted .274 with nine homers and 25 RBI in 40 games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He made his season debut June 8 for the Yankees after Aaron Judge injured a toe while crashing into the Dodger Stadium wall.

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