Pitcher Stephen Strasburg, Nationals Agree To Deal Adding $175 Million

A person familiar with the negotiations says starting right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg has agreed to a new contract with the Washington Nationals that will reportedly pay him $175 million over seven seasons beginning in 2017.

Pitcher Stephen Strasburg, Nationals Agree To Deal Adding $175 Million

The Nationals have not yet officially announced the deal.

Strasburg, 27, would have been eligible for free agency for the first time after this season. Instead, he will stay with the team that drafted him No. 1 overall in 2009 and shut him down before the playoffs in 2012 in order to protect his surgically repaired right elbow.

Strasburg will now go from making $7.4 million this season to earning $25 million annually from 2017-2023. The new deal’s total dollars match the sixth-highest earned in a deal by a major league pitcher: the 2013-19 contract of the Seattle Mariners’ Felix Hernandez . He can opt out of the deal and become a free agent after 2019 or 2020.

Strasburg would also earn a $1 million performance bonus each year for pitching 180 innings.

“Ensuring that Stephen will remain a part of our organization for years to come is a proud moment for our entire family,” Nationals owner Ted Lerner said in a statement. “We are very fond of Stephen and his entire family, and we’ve thought very highly of them since he became such an integral part of our organization almost seven years ago. We’re honored that he feels the same way about the Washington Nationals, and very happy to keep him pitching in the nation’s capital.”

Strasburg deflected questions regarding his contract with the team following the Nationals’ 5-4 home victory over the Detroit Tigers on Monday night. The Nationals then lost to the Tigers 5-4 Tuesday night.

Asked about his comfort level in Washington, Strasburg said, “Growing up in Southern California, San Diego, all my life and stuff, the East Coast is a little bit of a change. But the city of D.C. has been great to me and my family. It’s really grown on us. We’re very comfortable here.”

In six-plus major league seasons, Strasburg has a career record of 59-37 with a 3.06 ERA.

The Nationals (20-13), who are second in the NL East, will next play the Tigers again in Washington on Wednesday night.

PHOTO: WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 24: Stephen Strasburg #37 of the Washington Nationals pitches in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Nationals Park on April 24, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Article by Pablo Mena