The Phillies on Thursday signed Odubel Herrera to a five-year contract that runs through the end of the 2021 season. The deal is worth a guaranteed $30.5 million, a major league source tells CSN Philly's Jim Salisbury.
The deal also includes club options for 2022 and 2023 at $11.5 million and $12.5 million.
Herrera's new contract will keep him a Phillie for potentially three additional years. His previous contract expired after 2020.
Herrera, who hit .297 as a rookie in 2015, took a step forward in his sophomore season, controlling the strike zone better and developing some power.
Herrera made the NL All-Star team last season and hit .286/.361/.420 in 656 plate appearances. His home run total jumped from eight to 15, and he stole 25 bases after stealing 16 as a rookie. Herrera walked 35 more times than he did in 2015, and cut his strikeout rate by nearly four percent.
The Phillies selected Herrera in the 2014 Rule 5 draft, exactly 10 years after they uncovered a gem in Shane Victorino the same way. Herrera, then a second baseman in the Texas Rangers' farm system, was coming off a season in which he hit .321 at Double A and then hit .372 in the Venezuelan Winter League. The Phillies thought he possessed the ability to play the outfield and his transition to CF was smoother than expected.
