Bryce Harper rejected $45M per year from Dodgers: Report

Former Washington Nationals player Bryce Harper has reportedly agreed to a massive 13-year, $330 million deal to play with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Slugger Bryce Harper turned down an even more lucrative offer – at least in the short term – than the $330 million contract he received from the Philadelphia Phillies this week, according to a report.

Harper, 27, rejected a four-year deal from the Los Angeles Dodgers that would have paid him $45 million per season, the highest annual pay of any contract in baseball history, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported. The deal would have allowed Harper to become a free agent again at age 30, setting up another huge payday.

Instead, Harper signed a 13-year deal with the Phillies that will pay him an average of $25.4 million per year over the course of the contract. The agreement does not include any opt-out for Harper, but he will have a no-trade clause, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

The Dodgers weren’t the only team that Harper reportedly turned down. Harper also had a 12-year, $310 million from the San Francisco Giants, according to NBC Sports.

Harper’s $330 million contract with the Phillies is the richest deal in MLB history in terms of overall value and the second-largest in the sports history, trailing only boxer Canelo Alvarez’s $365 million fight deal with streaming service DAZN.

The Phillies are expected to announce Harper’s signing at a press conference on Saturday, according to USA Today.