Arizona Diamondbacks: Mr. Corbin Goes To Washington

Former Arizona Diamondbacks star lefty Patrick Corbin signed a free agent deal with the Washington Nationals on Tuesday. Corbin gets eight figure a year over a six-year span.

Patrick Corbin was never going to resign with the Arizona Diamondbacks this summer – not after his excellent 2018 (3.15 ERA, 2.47 FIP, 2.61 xFIP), not after the September collapse that knocked the Diamondbacks out of the playoff picture. On Tuesday, the inevitable was made official.

Corbin signs in D.C. for six years, $140MM guaranteed. That’s a healthy $23.33MM per year to pitch in a rotation already stocked with All-Star right-handers Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. Corbin’s deal easily clears last offseason’s largest contract given out to a pitcher (Yu Darvish, $126MM guaranteed).

The frontrunners in the media, the Yankees and Phillies, both balked at giving Corbin a sixth year. The Syracuse native had stated interest in returning closer to work, and he accomplishes that goal in moving to DC.  Corbin will join fellow winter acquisitions Kurt Suzuki and Yan Gomes in trying to get the Nationals back to the playoffs in 2019.

For the Diamondbacks, they will recoup a pick after Competitive Balance Round A in next June’s draft, this because Corbin’s new contract exceeds $50MM. That’s a gold-plated opportunity for Arizona to add another promising young player to a strong collection of talent in the lower levels of the minors. This pick has the potential to be as high as #31 overall.