Washington Nationals introduce Patrick Corbin, make signing official
Dec 7, 2018, 1:35 PM
Washington Nationals new pitcher Patrick Corbin answers questions from members of the media during a baseball news conference at Nationals Park in Washington, Friday, Dec. 7, 2018. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
The Washington Nationals reportedly signed free agent pitcher Patrick Corbin on Tuesday, giving him what was believed to be a six-year deal worth $140 million, per MLB Network insider Jon Heyman.
The baseball world got an update on that big news on Friday when the Nationals made the signing official.
“We’ve always said that starting pitching is the driver,” Nationals GM Mike Rizzo said in an online statement. “As the top free agent pitcher on the market this offseason, we targeted Patrick from the onset. He was one of the top pitchers in the National League in 2018 and at 29 years old, we believe the best is yet to come. We are thrilled to bring him into our organization.”
Corbin joins a Nationals rotation that features fellow former Diamondback Max Scherzer — a three-time Cy Young Award winner — and former first overall draft pick Stephen Strasburg. Washington, which could lose star outfielder Bryce Harper this offseason in free agency, won 82 games last season and finished second in the NL East.
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In three career outings at Nationals Park, Corbin has allowed eight earned runs over 15.0 innings pitched with 18 hits, five walks and 14 strikeouts.
“We’ve always loved coming here as a visiting team,” Corbin said in a video on the team’s social media. “Coming to this ballpark, it was always a competitive team that we’ve played against. It was always a challenge for us and that’s obviously something that we’ve looked for. Having somewhere where you can come live and there’s so many things to do in this city that we’re looking forward to experience together, and just — for me to be a part of it is going to be really special.”
📍 District of Corbin pic.twitter.com/u7WWwqPwnW
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) December 7, 2018
Corbin made his second appearance on the National League All-Star team in 2018, having a career season as he posted a 3.15 ERA and 246 strikeouts over exactly 200 innings pitched. The left-hander also pitched his first career complete game shutout and finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting.
