(ed. note - "The first round of quotes in the press regarding the Washington Nationals and '09 #1 Draft Pick Stephen Strasburg agreeing on a deal in the moments before last night's Signing Deadline."):

• "Nats, Strasburg highlight deadline deals at $15M" - MLB - Yahoo! Sports - AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum

"Nationals president Stan Kasten said the team resolved the deal with Strasburg without much time to spare—"11:58 and 43 seconds," he said. "'People thought it would take to the last minute,' Kasten said, smiling. 'We didn’t even need that last minute.'"

• "Nationals, Strasburg Agree to Record-Setting Deal" - washingtonpost.com - Chico Harlan

"'I think what I kept saying to Scott was that Stephen wants to play,' Rizzo said. 'We want to have Stephen. There's a deal to be made here, and it's a deal somewhere in the middle here.'"

More Strasburg Quotes After The JUMP...

• "Strasburg contract numbers" | The Fabulous Forum | Los Angeles Times - Bill Shaikin and Dylan Hernandez

"The signing bonus is $7.5 million, payable in three installments of $2.5 million each. The first payment is due 15 days after the contract is approved. The second payment is due Jan. 10, 2010. The third payment is due Jan. 10, 2011.

"Strasburg gets a prorated share of the minimum major league salary of $400,000 this season. He is guaranteed $2 million in 2010, $2.5 million in 2011 and $3 million in 2012."

• 4/29/09 - "Thom Loverro: Bowden discovers his calling in La-La Land" - Washington Times

"Strasburg is going to be drafted by Washington. You think they are going to sign him early? No, it's going to be Aug. 15 at 11:57 p.m. It will end at around $15 million, about under $35 million of what Scott [Boras] wants, but that is where it ends up. It will be record-breaking, and he will be pitching in the big leagues in September. He is that good."

• "Thom Loverro: The Strasburg era arrives, for now" - Washington Times

"If Strasburg is not the second coming of Walter Johnson, there are going to be some disappointed people - the fans whose hopes were raised by the hype and the record money awarded by the Lerner family to a kid who has never thrown a pitch in the major leagues."

• Twitter / Bob Nightengale: Strasburg, who got a $15.1 ...

"Strasburg, who got a $15.1 million guaranteed contract won't make his MLB debut before 2010, Boras says. Press conference likely on Thursday..."

• Twitter / Bob Nightengale:

"They originally were seeking a deal in the low 20s, never $50 million as reported, Boras said on Strasburg negotiations."

• FJB: Congratulations to Strasburg and the Nationals - Steven

"There's no cheaper source of premium talent than the draft. Even if he gets hurt tomorrow, this was a tremendous bargain to bring in a talent of this caliber. The Nationals seem to have driven a hard bargain, and they probably saved money today by walking away from Aaron Crow a year ago."

• 1500 South Capitol St. - Estoppel.08 -

直前まで実に静かに交渉が進んでいましたが、数日前から、①Lernerオーナー、Kasten球団社長、Rizzo暫定GMらが直接Strasburgと会見した、②1700万ドルをオファーしているという情報が入ってきました。そして、前日には、Kasten球団社長から個人的にはもっともだと思う以下のコメントが出されています。

• NATIONALS NEWS NETWORK - Dave Nichols : STRASBURG SIGNS!!!

"This represents the best evidence of the ownership group providing the baseball personnel the talent they need to change the culture of losing that has dominated this franchise for the last several years, after the surprise near-.500 finish in 2005."

• "Washington Nationals, Stephen Strasburg agree for over $15M" - ESPN - Pedro Gomez

Stephen Strasburg:

"It feels awesome. I got a little nervous there for a while that it might not happen, but I feel very blessed," Strasburg told ESPN's Pedro Gomez. "I'm not sure of the plan right now. They said they'd bring me up for the media. They said to take my time to get ready. It's an amazing feeling. I really wasn't sure if it was going to happen, but I'm glad it did."

More news tonight...