Philadelphia Phillies: Jake Arrieta Signing Bolsters Rotation with Veteran Presence
The Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly signed former NL CY Young Winner and Chicago Cubs ace Jake Arrieta as a deal was first reported by Joe Heyman of FanRag Sports and confirmed soon thereafter by NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury. USA Today Sports MLB columnist Bob Nightengale noted that the Phillies were favorites to sign Arrieta and that the agreement is a three-year, $75 million deal. As Nightengale also points out, this move is just another way the Phillies improved their roster during the offseason and spring training to quietly become competitive for the 2018 season.
Jake Arrieta gets $75 million over 3 years
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) March 11, 2018
The #Phillies spent $145 million on Jake Arrieta (75M) and Carlos Santana (70) and in excess of 30 million on bullpen to suddenly make them a very competitive team
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) March 11, 2018
Arrieta is just the type of pitcher the Phillies needed to add to their starting rotation. Aaron Nola is the team’s young ace but someone like Arrieta immediately makes this young squad better. In the last four years, the former Cubs’ ace struck out at least 163 batters each season. During the 2015 season when the Cubs won the World Series and Arrieta earned the NL Cy Young Award, the dominant pitcher fanned 236 batters.
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The Phillies made moves to bolster their bullpen in the offseason. There were talks and speculation that the Phillies may start the season with only four starters. However, that talk should end with Sunday’s news. Arrieta should be the team’s No. 1 pitcher on the depth chart. He’s earned that right based on what he did with the Cubs especially during the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
Why Signing Jake Arrieta Was A Good Idea
Philadelphia didn’t overpay either as the deal is reported to be $25 million a year on average over three years. This deal doesn’t break the bank or look like they overspent for someone of Arrieta’s pedigree. Likewise, the deal’s length is team friendly as well. It gives them long-term stability but also doesn’t lock them into a bad deal as Arrieta heads into his late thirties. He’s currently 32-years old so the deal will end when he is 35.
The Phillies now have a dynamic and dangers duo on the mound with Arrieta and Nola. The latter is one of the game’s best pitchers currently when he is on top of his game. The 24-year-old pitcher can benefit greatly from this signing and that news should be music to the fans’ ears.
All in all, the Phillies made yet another spectacular move in the offseason. While deals like this aren’t usually made during the Spring Training portion of the season, the Phillies paid off by being patient and not giving in to the former Cy Young’s first request.
This move is a win-win for both sides as the team’s competitiveness just rose significantly and Arrieta finds a home with a bunch of young but talented pieces on the team. Likewise, the Phillies needed a veteran presence on their starting rotation and they found it at a team-friendly cost as well.
Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.
