"The Nationals rewarded Michael Morse for his breakout 2011 season today, signing the right-handed slugger to a multiyear agreement, the team announced. The sides agreed on a two-year extension, a person with knowledge of the deal said, avoiding arbitration through the 2013 season, at which point Morse will be eligible for free agency. Update, 7:26 p.m.: Another person with knowledge of the agreement said the deal is worth $10.5 million.

Since the Nationals only bought out Morse's remaining arbitration-eligible seasons, the contract does not significantly change the relationship between the team and Morse. Morse's deal should also have little-to-no effect on the status of the Nationals' pursuit of Prince Fielder.

That does not minimize the accomplishment for Morse, whose late-20s rise earned him considerable financial security. When the Nationals traded light-hitting outfielder Ryan Langerhans to the Seattle Mariners for Morse in the middle of the 2009 season, they couldn't have envisioned what Morse would become.

After struggling with injuries and lack of opportunity for most of his career, Morse blossomed in Washington. Morse, who will turn 30 in March, received only 55 big-league plate appearances in 2009. He closed the 2010 season on a tear and then forced his way into playing every day last year. He hit 31 homers with a .360 on-base percentage and a .550 slugging percentage in 2011, emerging as one of the top sluggers in the National League. "