Mere hours after the Nationals celebrated their World Series championship with a parade in Washington D.C., news broke that Stephen Strasburg plans to opt out of the final four years and $100 million of his contract with the team, NBC Sports Washington's Todd Dybas confirmed.
MLB.com's Mark Feinsand and ESPN's Jeff Passan were first to report news of Strasburg opting out.
This news means the Fall Classic's MVP is now on the free agent market.
With our All Access Daily newsletter, stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams!
SIGN UP HERE Strasburg's decision leaves us with a lot of questions, the main one being how will this affect free agency. Another big question ... how will this impact Madison Bumgarner?
For starters, MadBum will take yet another backseat and will no longer be one of the biggest names in the free agent pool, which means he more than likely will not be the one who gets the biggest paycheck.
As has been reported, this will also shed $100 million of Strasburg's contract. He's going to want a lot of money, and deservedly so.
The free agent pool is filled with a lot of starting pitching talent and MadBum will be in the same group as not only Strasburg, but also Gerrit Cole. The Astros' ace had an AL-leading 2.50 ERA with an MLB-leading 326 strikeouts and 2.64 FIP.
San Francisco Giants
Find the latest San Francisco Giants news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
Strasburg boasted a 3.32 ERA during the regular season, and he did become the first pitcher ever to go 5-0 in a single postseason.
You see what Bumgarner has to compete with?
Could this create some hope that Bumgarner stays with the Giants? This certainly increases the chances for an organization starving for starting pitching, but what team isn't?
Many players have elected to avoid the free agency process. The way it's taken a slow pace in recent years, it might not be worth it.
Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi is expecting another long offseason, both for the Giants and MLB.
He gave an expected generic response saying the organization has an interest "in at least having discussions" about some of those players returning.
[RELATED: MLB playoff starters' strength reminiscent of MadBum brilliance]
Despite teams wanting to dedicate rotation spots to young arms, there is always a need for a veteran presence on the pitching staff.
Be prepared for another long offseason, folks.