Johnny Cueto Signs Four-Year Contract Extension With Reds

According to Enrique Rojas, Cueto will make $27 million over the life of the deal. It’s unknown how that total will break down over each of the four seasons, but the fourth will buy out what was to be Cueto’s first year of free agency. This was his first winter of arbitration eligibility. It’s expected that Cueto will earn around $3.5 million in 2011, with the salaries escalating each season from there.

The soon-to-be 25-year-old Cueto is a power righty who works primarily off of a good fastball and sharp slider. He’s thrown 531 innings over 92 starts in his first three Major League seasons, with a 4.27 ERA and 7.3 strikeouts per nine innings. While he isn’t quite a staff ace, he has the stuff to reach the next level, and as is he’s an effective #2 who’s able to succeed against both right- and left-handed bats.