(AP) Gerrit Cole quickly ended Stephen Strasburg’s tenure as baseball’s highest-paid pitcher. Cole has agreed to a $324 million, nine-year contract with the New York Yankees, according to a person familiar with the agreement.
Cole’s deal establishes marks for pitchers in total dollars. It tops the $245 million, seven-year contract Stephen Strasburg finalized a day earlier to remain with the World Series champion Washington Nationals.
Its $36 million average is a record for any player and beats the $35.5 million in outfielder Mike Trout’s $426.5 million, 12-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels that started last season. Agent Scott Boras negotiated the deals for Cole and Strasburg.
