Free agent outfielder Bryce Harper will join the Philadelphia Phillies on a 13-year, $330 million deal, according to multiple reports.

Harper's contract with the Phillies, which will be the largest free agent deal in Major League Baseball history, will reportedly not include any opt-outs and will have a full no-trade clause. He gets a $20 million signing bonus, a $10 million salary this year, $26 million in each of the following nine seasons and $22 million in each of the last three years. None of the money is deferred.

Many teams were reportedly interested in Harper, one of the top free agents of the off-season, including the Chicago White Sox, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and his now-former team the Washington Nationals.

Harper was reportedly offered a 10-year, $300 million deal by the Nationals late in the season but elected to test the open market.

 

Largest Free Agent Contracts Signed In MLB History

 
RK Player Team Signed In Years Total
1 Bryce Harper, OF PHI 2019 13 $330M
2 Manny Machado, 3B SD 2019 10 $300M
3 Alex Rodriguez, 3B NYY 2008 10 $275M
4 Alex Rodriguez, SS TEX 2001 10 $252M
T5 Albert Pujols, 1B LAA 2012 10 $240M
T5 Robinson Cano, 2B SEA 2014 10 $240M
6 David Price, RHP BOS 2016 7 $217M
7 Prince Fielder, 1B DET 2012 9 $214M
8 Max Scherzer, RHP WSH 2015 7 $210M
9 Zack Greinke, RHP ARI 2016 6 $206.5M
10 Jason Heyward, OF CHC 2016 8 $184M
 

After a slow start to the year, Harper hit his stride and finished with 34 home runs and a career-high 100 RBI. Both totals were tops with the Nationals.

The best season of his career to date was in 2015 when he led the National League with 42 home runs and an OPS of 1.109 en route to winning the Most Valuable Player award.

He followed that up with a disappointing 2016 campaign (24 home runs, 86 RBI), but has been solid over the last two years, re-establishing himself as one of the best hitters in baseball.

Through seven seasons, Harper has tallied 184 home runs, 521 RBI and six All-Star honours. 

Philadelphia has been among the most active teams this off-season, adding outfielder Andrew McCutchen for $50 million over three years and reliever David Robertson for $23 million over two years, and acquiring catcher J.T. Realmuto and shortstop Jean Segura.

After leading their division in early August, the Phillies went 16-33 over the final 49 games of last season and at 80-82 finished with a losing record for the sixth straight season.

 

Longest sports contracts signed in North America

 
RK Player Team League Years Total
1 Magic Johnson LAL NBA 25 $25M
T2 Ilya Kovalchuk NJ NHL 15 $100M
T2 Rick DiPietro NYI NHL 15 $67.5M
3 Shea Weber NSH NHL 14 $110M
T4 Bryce Harper PHI MLB 13 $330M
T4 Alexander Ovechkin WSH NHL 13 $124M
T5 Donovan McNabb PHI NFL 12 $115M
T5 Mike Richards PHI NHL 12 $69M
T5 Marian Hossa CHI NHL 12 $62.8M
6 Todd Helton COL MLB 11 $151.5M
 

An up-and-down defender and an unusual mix of popular and polarizing, Harper is known for the occasional contretemps with opponents, one particular exchange with a reporter about a "clown question," and, most infamously, a dugout dustup in which he was choked by then-teammate Jonathan Papelbon during a game.

Washington took him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 amateur draft and called him up to the majors less than two years later. He would go on to become the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year for a Nationals club that won its first division title and made its post-season debut.

Harper was also an integral part of the team that added NL East titles in 2014, 2016 and 2017 and never finished lower than second place in his seven seasons. Another key stat, though: The Nationals never won a playoff series in that span.

With Washington's Nationals Park hosting the 2018 All-Star Game, Harper stole the show the day before the Midsummer Classic by winning the Home Run Derby before an ecstatic crowd filled with folks wearing his No. 34 Nationals jersey. Harper wore a headband with the D.C. flag's design, reflecting his oft-stated pride in playing for Washington.

A year after going 82-80 and missing the playoffs under rookie manager Dave Martinez, the Nationals will move forward without Harper.

Washington general manager Mike Rizzo would have loved to keep Harper in his team's lineup but didn't sit around and wait to find out whether that would happen. Instead, Rizzo spent such money elsewhere, adding lefty starter Patrick Corbin on a $140 million deal and righty starter Anibal Sanchez, along with second baseman Brian Dozier, a pair of catchers in Yan Gomes and Kurt Suzuki and two key bullpen pieces in Trevor Rosenthal and Kyle Barraclough.