In some absolutely shocking news around the Major League Baseball world, the Washington Nationals have reportedly agreed to sign starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg to a seven-year, $175 million contract extension.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman was the first to report the financial terms of the deal.
Six years removed from Tommy John surgery, this is a bit of a risk for the Nationals, who already have Max Scherzer under contract on a seven-year, $210 million contract.
Despite his injury history, Strasburg has proven himself more than capable atop the Nationals’ rotation in recent seasons.
The 27-year-old ace has posted a 5-0 record with a 2.36 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in six starts thus far this season. That comes on the heels of him putting up a 25-18 mark with an ERA of over 3.25 over the past two seasons.
It’s a huge deal for someone that’s not necessarily being relied on to be the team’s ace. It’s also a deal the Nationals needed to get done before Strasburg was set to hit free agency.
By virtue of this deal, Strasburg is now tied with Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez as the sixth highest-paid starting pitcher in baseball (total value). He’s also now one of 15 non-position players under contract for $100-plus million.