Report: Pirates agree to 3-year, $26M deal with Nova
Ivan Nova is sticking with the club that helped revitalize his career.
The right-hander reportedly agreed to a three-year, $26-million deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday, sources told Robert Murray of FanRag Sports.
The deal is a significant drop-off from the offers that Nova's agent claimed he received in November. Greg Genske stated that his client had offers in the three-year, $36-million range - a similar deal to the one fellow former Pirates reclamation project J.A. Happ landed last winter. Nova, however, was eager to return to Pittsburgh, and it's possible he took less money to do so.
"I don't want to leave this clubhouse, to be honest," Nova told Adam Berry of MLB.com in late September. "It's not up to me. I've got to talk to my agent. My agent will let me know what's going on. If there's something I can do to stay here, it's what I will do."
After struggling for parts of three seasons with the New York Yankees, Nova landed in Pittsburgh at the non-waiver deadline last summer and found immediate success. He went 5-2 with a 3.06 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 64 2/3 innings with the Pirates, striking out 52.
| YEAR | TEAM | IP | ERA | WHIP | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | PIT | 64.2 | 3.06 | 1.09 | 52 |
| 2016 | NYY | 97.1 | 4.90 | 1.35 | 75 |
| 2015 | NYY | 94 | 5.07 | 1.40 | 63 |
| 2014 | NYY | 20.2 | 8.27 | 1.83 | 12 |
| 2013 | NYY | 139.1 | 3.10 | 1.28 | 116 |
Nova was one of the top remaining starters on the free-agent market and helps the Pirates address a major need in the rotation. It was reported Wednesday that general manager Neal Huntington had been working hard to trade for Chicago White Sox left-hander Jose Quintana, and Nova's arrival apparently hasn't gotten in the way of the Pirates' pursuit, a source told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Nova's signing represents the second pitcher the Pirates have added this week. They reportedly agreed to a two-year, $11-million deal with right-handed reliever Daniel Hudson on Tuesday.