There’s been no official confirmation, but Wednesday morning Jon Heyman tweeted this:
Report: Cardinals’ Jaime Garcia Signs Long-Term Contract
jaime garcia & cardinals complete multiyear deal. announcement could come today. word is, $27.5mil for 4 yrs, plus 2 options
For the Cardinals, those two option years are the key. They'll presumably save a fair amount of money in those first four years, but adding two years of player control means a great deal, particularly if the club retains the ability to trade Garcia.
Not that they’re likely to want to trade him. As a rookie in 2010, Garcia posted a 2.70 ERA that ranked fourth in the National League; in most seasons, he probably would have garnered Rookie of the Year honors. In 2011, he’s been even better, maintaining his strikeout and ground-ball rates while cutting his walks by nearly a third. As long as Garcia’s healthy and working with Dave Duncan, there’s absolutely no reason to think he won’t annually be one of the very best pitchers in the National League. Getting him locked up is fantastic news for Cardinals fans.
For more about Garcia and the Cardinals, please visit Viva El Birdos.
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