Free agent ace Zack Greinke and the Arizona Diamondbacks have reached agreement on a six-year contract, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press on Friday night.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because there hadn’t been an official announcement.
The major league ERA leader chose Arizona over the NL West rival Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. The 32-year-old Greinke helped the Dodgers win their third straight division title this season, then opted out of his contract to become a free agent.
Fox first reported the deal, and said it was worth $206 million.
Greinke was the second former AL Cy Young winner to get a rich contract this week. David Price joined the Boston Red Sox for $217 million over seven years.
In December 2012, Greinke signed a $147 million, six-year deal with the Dodgers that included an opt-out clause. He exercised it and walked away from a guaranteed $71 million over the next three years.
The Diamondbacks emerged as a surprise winner in the Greinke sweepstakes. They finished 79-83 last season, 13 games behind the West champion Dodgers and also trailing the Giants, who have won three of the last six World Series.
Arizona scored the second-most runs in the NL last season, but was thin in the pitching department – Diamondbacks starters threw the second-fewest innings in the league.
Greinke had a 1.66 ERA last season that was the lowest in the majors since Greg Maddux had a 1.63 ERA in 1995. Greinke had a scoreless streak of 45 2-3 innings this summer.
Greinke went 19-3, setting a career high for wins, and pitched 222 2-3 innings. A Gold Glove winner who also likes to hit, the right-hander teamed with lefty Clayton Kershaw to give the Dodgers a formidable 1-2 combo at the top of the rotation.