The Philadelphia Phillies have been one of the most active teams this winter heading into the 2019 season, and they made another significant move on Wednesday to take care of one of their own stud players.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that starting pitcher Aaron Nola has signed a four-year, $45 million extension with the Phillies. The deal will cover his three remaining years of arbitration and at least one more, with the team able to keep him through age 31.
The deal will cover Nola’s three years of arbitration and at least one free-agent year. Will be a free agent entering age 30 season if #Phillies do not exercise option, age 31 if they do. https://t.co/dhUV3Aotx5
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 13, 2019
ESPN’s Jeff Passan has a more detailed breakdown of the new contract:
The breakdown of Aaron Nola's deal with the Phillies:
$2M signing bonus
2019: $4M
2020: $8M
2021: $11.75M
2022: $15M
2023: $16M club option with $4.25M buyoutThe deal can cover two years of free agency for Nola if the Phillies exercise the option.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 13, 2019
Nola made a career-high 33 starts with Philly last season, and he emerged as one of the best young pitchers in baseball. The 25-year-old right-hander went 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA in 212.1 innings pitched. He has a career 3.35 ERA.
The Phillies are having a great offseason thus far, and signing Nola to a new deal adds to that. They have traded for star catcher JT Realmuto and shortstop Jean Segura in addition to signing outfielder Andrew McCutchen and reliever David Robertson. They also have their eyes on much bigger prizes, and it’s clear they are committed to contending for a World Series title in 2019.
