MLB Rumors: Philadelphia Phillies sign A.J. Burnett
By Bryan Rose
Both the Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles waited all offseason for A.J. Burnett to make a decision on his pending retirement.
But nice guys apparently finish last as Burnett has spurned both franchises and will reportedly sign a one-year deal with the Philadelphia Phillies, this according to Todd Zolecki and Ken Rosnethal.
The Pirates had expressed heavy interest in retaining Burnett all offseason and were still interested in recent days. The Phillies were said to have similar interest, but were deemed out of the Burnett sweepstakes as recently as yesterday – so the signing comes with a bit of a shock attached to it.
Burnett was not offered a qualifying offer by the Pirates, so Philadelphia will not need to forfeit any future draft picks to sign the veteran. There have been rumors suggesting Burnett was not happy the Pirates didn’t offer him the qualifying contract which would have paid him $14.1 million dollars this season.
Terms of the contract have yet to be released.
The 37-year-old Burnett posted a 3.30 ERA and 209 strikeout’s in 191 innings last season.
Update: Philadelphia signed Burnett to a one-year, $16 million dollar contract. Yes, you read that correctly.