Desert Heat: Arizona Diamondbacks ignite Hot Stove, sign Zack Greinke

The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed right-handed pitcher Zack Greinke, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported Friday.

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported that the deal is a six-year contract. Rosenthal and Heyman reported that Greinke will make $206.5 million, with deferrals in the contract expected.

The Diamondbacks truly came out of nowhere to sign Greinke. 

Greinke was thought to be deciding between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. Then, this evening, Rosenthal reported that the Diamondbacks were planning on pursuing him, making three National League West rivals in the mix. 

The Dodgers reportedly did not want to go past five-years on Greinke, while the Diamondbacks went with six. 

Arizona was known to be in on the starting pitching market, reportedly making an offer to Johnny Cueto and showing interest in Mike Leake. Greinke was never known to be on their radar until this evening. 

Greinke will make an average of $32.5 million per year, which is a Major League record, breaking the old record of $31 million per season (shared by Miguel Cabrera and David Price). 

If Greinke makes 32 starts in 2016 (like he did in 2014 and 2015), he will make about $1.075 million per start. If he pitches 220 innings, he will make $156,439.39 per inning and $52,146.47 per out. 

The Diamondbacks were never thought to be true contenders in 2016, but with the addition of Greinke, they have catapulted themselves into early contention. 

They are building around a core of Paul Goldschmidt and A.J. Pollock in their lineup but sensed an obvious need in their rotation. After signing Greinke, their rotation includes Patrick Corbin, Rubby De La Rosa, Robbie Ray, and top prospect Archie Bradley. Grienke leads the rotation, but it is obvious that they could still use a little more help.

It's hard to know whether this contract will work out for the Diamondbacks, but they will control Greinke during his age-32 through age-38 seasons. He is likely to go through at least somewhat of a decline between now and then, but the question becomes how much and how quickly does Greinke decline?

Last season, Greinke was fantastic. He went 19-3 with a 1.66 ERA (2.76 FIP) in 222 2/3 innings pitched. He posted a 200 to 40 strikeout-to-walk ratio and never had an ERA above two the entire season.

Over his career, Greinke has pitched with the Royals, Brewers, Angels, and Dodgers. He has a 142-93 record in 364 appearances (323 starts), posting a 3.35 ERA and 3.71 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 12 years in the league. 

 --Devan Fink

---