Rafael Soriano‘s long ordeal on the free-agent market has come to an end.
As reported by Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, the veteran closer is signing with the Washington Nationals:
Source: Rafael Soriano agrees to two-year, $28M deal with Nationals. Deal contains vesting option for third year. Story coming on Y! Sports.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 15, 2013
Passan also noted that Soriano’s option for the 2015 season will vest if he finishes 120 games in 2013 and 2014.
Score another one for the mystery team. The Nationals didn’t stand out as a target for a big-money closer when the offseason began, but GM Mike Rizzo is clearly sparing no expense to build on what his team established in 2012.
As with any deal in baseball, there are winners and losers of Soriano’s contract with the Nationals. Let’s take a gander.
Note: Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted. Salary and contract information courtesy of Cot’s Baseball Contracts.