Nationals make wise investment in signing Stephen Strasburg

11:15 PM ET

For all those teams saving up their money to make a run at Stephen Strasburg, well …

With Stephen Strasburg allegedly signed, here’s a graphic representation of this year’s free agent pitchers. pic.twitter.com/YFrFm71Zgz

— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) May 10, 2016

Strasburg was expected to be the top free-agent pitcher this winter, but has instead agreed to a seven-year, $175 million extension with the Washington Nationals. ESPN.com’s Eddie Matz reports the deal will include a rolling opt-out clause after the third or fourth year of the deal. Since he’s a Scott Boras client, most expected Strasburg to test the market like other Boras players, but that opt-out clause is undoubtedly a big reason Strasburg was willing to sign this extension. If he gets hurt or pitches poorly, he can just take his Nationals’ money; if he pitches well, he can still hit free agency when he’s 30 or 31 and get another big deal if he desires.

Strasburg does remain a bit of an enigma, which admittedly is a little unfair, a byproduct of being one of the most hyped pitching prospects ever. He’s been a very good pitcher, but nevertheless has pitched 200 innings just once in four seasons since returning from Tommy John surgery and has never posted an ERA under 3.00 in a full season. Since 2012, there have been 56 different pitcher seasons where a qualified starter posted an ERA under 3.00. Heck, a Nationals pitcher has done it six times; none of those were Strasburg. On the other hand, among pitchers with at least 300 innings since 2012, Strasburg ranks fifth in strikeout rate, a testament to his stuff that remains electric.

Strasburg’s issues — and, remember, these are minor issues we’re talking …

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