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Ryan Howard will play first base for the Phillies until at least 2016. Sounds pretty good, doesn't it?
Yep, the Phillies signed Howard to a five year extension worth $125 million. That is the largest contract in Philadelphia Phillies history and it keeps Howard in Philly through 2016. There is also a club option for a sixth year that could raise the total value to $138 million.
Howard is now 30 and in the middle of a three-year, $54 million contract extension. He will make $19 million this season and $20 million in 2011. The latest extension begins in 2012. He will make $20 million in 2012 and 2013 and $25 million from 2014-16. The option in 2017 is worth $23 million with a $10 million buyout. The deal includes awards bonuses and a limited no-trade clause.
Ryan Howard is quickly becoming the best offensive player in Phillies history. Since joining the big team in 2005, he leads the Majors in home runs (222) and RBIs (650). Howard is just the fourth player in baseball history to have four consecutive seasons with at least 40 home runs and 130 RBIs.
Howard also was the player fastest to hit 200 home runs, which he did in 658 games. That's 48 games faster than the next best of Ralph Kiner, who did it in 706 games.
Originally selected by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2001 Draft, Howard has a career .279 batting average, 225 home runs and 656 RBI in 750 games. He is fifth on the Phillies' all-time home run list and his .583 slugging percentage is the best in club history.
This was certainly a surprise to me. I just assumed that Howard would go with the highest bidder and test free agency. And I never thought the Phillies would be willing to spend an average of $25 million per year on any player.
This is a great signing, and it guarantees that we keep most of our core for quite some time. The big question now is what will happen to Jayson Werth. By signing Howard, the Phillies may not have enough money to pay Werth the $15 million he will command in the open market. But who knows...
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