When right-hander Zach Eflin was a free agent after the 2022 season, a year in which he recovered from injury to pitch well down the stretch for the National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies, he didn’t have to wait around long for the perfect deal.
The Tampa Bay Rays, the club Elfin cheered for growing up in Oviedo, Fla., about two hours from Tropicana Field, offered him the largest free-agent deal in franchise history: Three years and $40 million.
Eflin was one of the first free-agent pitchers to sign that winter, securing a contract that would keep him close to home and with an organization known for its superb pitching program. In his first season with Tampa Bay, Eflin won 16 games, posted a career-best 3.50 ERA and finished sixth in the 2023 AL Cy Young race.
