The Phillies and left-hander Jesús Luzardo have agreed to an extension, according to various reports. He was previously slated for free agency after 2026. It’s reportedly a five-year pact starting in 2027, which guarantees the Roc Nation Sports client $135MM. There is also a $32.5MM club option, though Luzardo can boost that by $2MM with each top five Cy Young finish, giving him a chance to potentially raise it as high as $42.5MM. He will receive a $1MM assignment bonus each time he is traded until he reaches 10-and-5 rights.
Luzardo, 28, was once one of the top pitching prospects in baseball and he has established himself as a legit big league arm in the past few years. With the Marlins in 2022 and 2023, he made 50 starts and logged 279 innings, allowing 3.48 earned runs per nine. His 7.9% walk rate and 40.1% ground ball rate were close to league average as he struck out a strong 28.7% of batters faced. His four-seamer and sinker both averaged in the upper 90s while he also made good use of a mid-80s changeup and slider.
He had a bit of a dip in 2024. He missed time due to some elbow tightness and also due to a lumbar stress reaction. He only made 12 starts on the year and had a flat 5.00 ERA. The Phils still liked the player enough to take a chance on him going into 2025. They sent prospects Starlyn Caba and Emaarion Boyd to the Marlins in exchange for Luzardo and Paul McIntosh.
The bet paid off, as Luzardo returned to form in 2025. He made 32 starts and threw 183 2/3 innings with a 3.92 ERA, 28.5% strikeout rate, 7.5% walk rate and 42.8% ground ball rate. He also made two postseason appearances with a 2.35 ERA. He finished seventh in National League Cy Young voting.
As mentioned, 2026 was slated to be Luzardo’s final arbitration season before he would become a free agent. He and the Phils avoided arbitration by agreeing to an $11MM salary for this year. He could have played out the campaign and would have been in position for a strong contract if he had another good season. He’s currently 28 years and old, turning 29 in September.
The top free agent deals for starting pitchers have been around $200MM in recent years, with Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Dylan Cease all getting to that range. Fried got $218MM. The latter two got $210MM, both with notable deferrals.
Luzardo hasn’t quite put up the same kind of results as those guys. Burnes and Fried have posted ERAs under 3.00 pretty regularly. Cease has had a more wobbly ERA but with comparable strikeout and walk rates to Luzardo with greater availability. Luzardo would have been younger than everyone in that group, however. Cease and Burnes signed their deals going into their age-30 seasons, while Fried was going into his age-31 campaign.
Players who sign extensions a year from the open market generally sacrifice a bit of upside in exchange for the security of locking in a deal that is still quite large. Dating back to 2017, the top extension for a pitcher with service time between five and six years was $131MM over seven years for José Berríos.
Like Luzardo, Berríos was going into his age-28 season and would have been a free agent ahead of his age-29 campaign. Berríos was also generally a guy with an ERA in the 3.50 range, though with greater durability. Berríos agreed to his deal before working out a salary for his final arbitration season. When considering the $11MM Luzardo is getting in 2026, he will make $146MM over the next six years.
Waiting until after 2026 to sign could have led to an even greater contract, but it also would have come with risk. In addition to his aforementioned 2024 injuries, Luzardo also missed a few months due to a forearm strain in 2022. A notable injury in 2026 could have led to him heading into the winter with significantly less earning power, so he is taking the proverbial bird in the hand with this deal.
For the Phils, they have not been shy about spending money on starting pitching. Going into the 2020 season, they signed free agent Zack Wheeler via a five-year, $118MM deal. Ahead of the 2023 season, they gave Taijuan Walker $72MM over four years. Going into 2024, they brought back Aaron Nola with a seven-year, $172MM pact. They then extended Wheeler for $126MM over three years. They also recently locked up Cristopher Sánchez, who was still in his pre-arbitration years, with a four-year deal worth $22.5MM.
Going into 2026, Wheeler may start the season on the injured list but could be back fairly early. For the 2026 season, health permitting, the four primary starters will be Wheeler, Nola, Sánchez and Luzardo. The fifth could be Walker but also could be prospect Andrew Painter.
Looking ahead to 2027, Luzardo was slated for free agency and Walker as well. That would have left the Phillies with a core of Wheeler, Nola and Sánchez. Wheeler is signed through 2027 and plans to retire after that. Painter could theoretically fill one spot but he’s a big question mark right now. Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2023 and 2024. He was back on the hill in 2025 but posted a 5.40 ERA in Triple-A.
Rather than waiting until next winter to address the 2027 rotation, they have proactively signed Luzardo to stick around. Since this appears to be a new contract, it shouldn’t impact the 2026 competitive balance tax. Luzardo will still have an $11MM hit this year. For the five years from 2027 to 2031, he’ll have a $27MM hit, the average annual value of his $135MM guarantee for those years.
The long-term books have a lot on them. As far out as 2030, the Phils have Nola, Luzardo, Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner all signed to deals with CBT hits of over $24MM. RosterResource already projects the club for a CBT number of almost $160MM for that 2030 season, before factoring in arbitration players or any other deals signed between now and then. But the Phils have generally been fine spending on the guys they like as they keep this core going.
For any club who was hoping to make a run at Luzardo next winter, they will have to consider other options. The 2026-27 free agent class already feels a bit light and will now have one fewer marquee name. Tarik Skubal will headline the group of starting pitchers, followed by guys like Freddy Peralta, Kevin Gausman and others. Burnes, Sonny Gray and Tatsuya Imai and others could shake things up by opting out of their deals.
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the two sides had agreed to a five-year deal starting in 2027. Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia first reported the $135MM guarantee. Robert Murray of FanSided reported the option details. Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported on the assignment bonus. Photos courtesy of Brett Davis, Jonathan Dyer, Imagn Images
Yay!
One had a feeling that this was going to be their play – all indications were that they preferred to extend Luzardo over Ranger Suarez. Time will tell, but they get more prime years; much higher velo / better overall stuff and similar injury concerns. As much as Ranger was a homegrown Phillie, if we take out sentiment then the logic makes sense.
100%
If Wheeler doesnt come back or comes back a shell of himself, he becomes the Ace ( hopefully ) and bridges/ nurses the next Phillies superstars like Painter n company
Congrats!
LIZARD KIIIIIIIING!
Smart move. Outstanding move by Phillies
Time will tell. Nearly a 4.00 ERA last season. Contract though shows both sides compromised, which is good to see. A big year and he could have commanded much more. Conversely, he locked in a nice contract regardless if he gets injured or has a poor season.
Nice deal for the Fightins
Nice move by the Phillies!
But will there be a 2027 season?
Glass half empty guy, eh? 🍻
Id say dramatic overpay and a sign of frustration in regards to the current situation with the payroll and the lack of depth on both the bench and in the rotation.
They would have been better off spending that cash on tax in ’26 and in signing Giolito for a run at the WS.
If every team appears to be “overpaying”, is it really overpaying?
I dont know, I like his K/BB, good pitcher, but spend to win this season if your going to spend and cut Luzardo loose. Giolito could have been the difference this season.
These two things are not mutually exclusive. One is signing an impending ’27 free agent to an extension. The other is signing a free agent. The Phillies can still conceivably sign Giolito.
No 2027 season, then no $27 million salary.
Sounds about right. Really good pitcher, just can’t stay healthy or consistent from year-to-year.
Great move for the Phillies! Keeping an extremely talented pitcher for multiple years to come, this is what you do if you want to compete for the World Series.
Good for him. Seems a bit high for a guy who hasn’t exactly been able to stay on the field but if you have the money and are willing to spend it, who cares
Excellent move
Shrewd
6/146 including this year
Enjoyed watching him pitch for the A’s when he first got called up. It was obvious he was going to be great and he’s still only 27 years old. He’s a beast, hope he stays healthy.
Good move by the Phils
135/5 for luzardo is insane
Great extension for them. With a solid season I think he easily commands more than that in FA. His peripherals are all great.
If he’s healthy he’s worth it…if
Smart move by he Phillies. I think he’s going to have one outstanding season and 2 good ones. At the price of pitching locking up talent always makes sense.
No good. Not with his extensive injury history.
Thats a wild contract. Not sure it works out for Phils
He has risen, to sign an extension!
Future closer!
🙏
Five million more than the Sox gave Ranger Suarez and the same amount of years
Does it matter that Luzardo is 2 years younger than Suarez? Might have to the Phils.
Could have. Or the Phillies saw what Suarez got and gambled on Luzardo being willing to take a similar deal. The expiring CBA probably helped a little as well
Or they simply want to lock up a pitcher they value.
Luzardo is the better pitcher when healthy. “When healthy” is the key, though. He’s only topped 150 IP twice in his career, and has missed some time in between his very good seasons. Suarez is a good pitcher too, just not as dominant. However he’s more durable. That they both received similar contracts this offseason isn’t totally surprising.