Report: Orioles agree to 3-year, $37.5M deal with Trumbo

Mark Trumbo is returning to Charm City.

The free-agent slugger reportedly reached agreement on a three-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday, according to Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com.

The contract, which is pending a physical, will reportedly pay Trumbo $37.5 million, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. It also contains some deferred money, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports.

The reported value of the deal represents a large drop from what Trumbo was apparently demanding earlier this offseason. During the winter meetings the 31-year-old was said to be seeking an $80-million contract, but ultimately had a hard time finding himself a home for 2017.

The prospect of Trumbo returning to Baltimore appeared to have dimmed somewhat at the beginning of the new year. Multiple reports last week suggested he had had turned down a three-year offer from Baltimore at some point this winter, while a December report said the team had pulled its offer off the table entirely.

During an interview this week, Orioles general manager Dan Duquette added to the drama by saying that acquiring the compensatory first-round pick tied to Trumbo should he sign elsewhere was more of a priority for the team than re-signing him.

Still, there have been flickers of hope that the sides might work something out in recent weeks, including a report that Trumbo might be willing to lower his asking price to remain with the Orioles.

Related - Finding a home: Why Orioles will sign Trumbo

Trumbo, the last available free agent tied to a first-round draft pick, led all of baseball with 47 home runs in 2016 - his first year with the Orioles - while playing 95 games in right field and another 56 at designated hitter. A two-time All-Star, Trumbo owns a career .776 OPS with 178 home runs, 517 RBIs, 231 walks, and 856 strikeouts over 849 games with the Orioles, Los Angeles Angels, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Seattle Mariners.

Besides the Orioles, Trumbo received interest from the Mariners, Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics, and Texas Rangers over the course of the offseason.