Looks like the Nationals have inked their first round pick, uber-prospect Stephen Strasburg for $15.67 million for 4 years according to the MLB Network along with ESPN and CNN/Sports Illiustrated. I guess Boras didn’t get the moon, the stars, the sun and the solar system but the boy did get paid though…
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but according to MLB Network and multiple reports it’s a four-year contract worth more than $15 million. That exceeds the previous record, the $10.5 million right-hander Mark Prior received from the Cubs after the 2001 Draft.
Strasburg is expected to be introduced at Nationals Park either Wednesday or Thursday.
The Nationals feel strongly that Strasburg can make an immediate impact in their rotation, maybe joining the team’s Major League roster sometime in September.
If he is promoted to the big leagues this season, Strasburg will become only the third pitcher in baseball history to be drafted No. 1 and play in the Majors in the same year, joining Rangers left-hander David Clyde in 1973 and Orioles right-hander Ben McDonald in ’89.
The late-coming news is great for Nationals fans who have suffered through quite a few losing seasons since the team has come to the Nation’s Capital. Glad to see that the top brass of the team, Boras and Strasburg were able to come to a consensus for a deal.
And just in the nick of time too…
It will be interesting to see in the coming months and years if Strasburg is the real deal, or if he’s not; however, let’s hope he avoids the fate that has befallen Mark Prior.
