Longtime Phillies pitcher Zach Eflin agrees to join the Tampa Bay Rays

Two months ago, Zach Eflin closed out the game that quenched an 11-year Phillies postseason drought.

Now, he’s slamming the door on a seven-year Phillies career.

Eflin, among the youngest starting pitchers in a free-agent market that’s still only simmering, has agreed to a three-year, $40 million contract with the Tampa Bay Rays, a source confirmed Thursday night. The deal was not announced because it is pending a physical.

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It marks a homecoming for Eflin, who grew up and still resides in central Florida, near Orlando. The contract is also the largest ever handed out by the Rays to a free agent, surpassing a $35 million pact with pitcher Wilson Alvarez in 1998.

Eflin, 28, reached free agency after turning down his half of a $15 million mutual option with the Phillies for 2023. He wagered on himself because he desired two things: a multiyear guarantee and a chance to be a starter again.

With the Rays, Eflin will get both.

And to think, a few months ago, the right-hander wasn’t sure when he might pitch again.

Eflin went on the injured list in June with a bruise that caused pain around the kneecap, the latest in a spate of knee injuries that limited him to a total of 31 starts and 181 innings in the last two years. When he returned in the middle of September, there wasn’t time to recondition his arm for starting. He made seven relief appearances and gave up one run in 7⅔ innings for a 1.17 ERA.

Once the playoffs began, Eflin was part of manager Rob Thomson’s circle of trust. He appeared in 10 of the Phillies’ 17 postseason games, never earlier than the sixth inning, and posted a 3.38 ERA.

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But durability has long been an issue for Eflin, who has thrown more than 128 innings in a season once in his career. So, there was a trace of detachment in his voice after Game 6 of the World Series, as though the Phillies’ second-longest-tenured player after Aaron Nola knew that he’d be leaving.

“It was honestly a dream come true,” Eflin said. “You hear so many stories about it and you just never see it throughout the regular season. But once you live in that moment and you’re on the field with all those fans in the stands, it makes it all worth it.

“You’re almost glad that they treat you the way they do during the regular season and throughout the past years. It makes it so worth it when you finally get there. They’re literally the fuel to the fire. They inspire you so much while you’re out there. It’s a freakin’ dream, man.”

The Phillies acquired Eflin on Dec. 19, 2014, in what turned out to be the first major trade of their rebuilding process. They sent Jimmy Rollins to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Eflin, whom they targeted in the draft two years earlier but missed out on taking.

Eflin made his major-league debut in 2016. The sinkerballer overcame surgery on both knees and emerged from a group of young pitchers that included Nick Pivetta and Vince Velasquez to secure a spot in the starting rotation in 2018.

In seven seasons with the Phillies, Eflin had a 4.49 ERA in 127 games, including 115 starts.

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Eflin becomes the first player from the Phillies’ World Series roster to leave the organization. Fellow pitchers Kyle Gibson, Noah Syndergaard, David Robertson, and Brad Hand, and second baseman Jean Segura are also free agents.

Before he came back, Eflin said the opportunity to pitch — in any role — down the stretch “would mean the world to me.”

It turned out to be worth $40 million.