Washington Nationals’ GM Mike Rizzo explained before tonight’s game, that the Nats signed 24-year-old, 2010 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Harper for 2018 ($21.625M) to allow Harper to simply play without any distractions this season and next season before he can potentially become a free agent.
“It’s a good time to have a comfortable player throughout the rest of the season,” Rizzo said, as quoted by MASN’s Mark Zuckerman.
“We don’t have to worry about things after the season. There will be no anxious moments, arbitration moments and that type of thing.