Reds 2B Phillips gets $72.5 million through 2017

They're all-in for a run of playoff appearances.

"I think this puts us in a pretty good position to build around two premier players on the everyday side, and with some of the pitchers we have to be a contending club for years to come, hopefully," general manager Walt Jocketty said. "It's not easy. A lot of things have to go right for you.

"But we're getting deeper and deeper in talent. That's what it's going to take in a small market."

Phillips' deal is the last major one for a while. It's been in the works since last year.

The Reds couldn't agree on the length of a new deal with Phillips, so they exercised the 2012 option on his old contract that is worth $12.5 million. They remained at odds until the Reds agreed to a longer deal.

"We originally had a certain number of years in mind that we were going to do the deal," Jocketty said. "Then we realized that we'd probably have to extend another year, and that's what we did. We went another year on the contract. We were able to get the deal done rather quick after that."

The new deal adds salaries of $10 million for next year, $11 million in 2014, $12 million in 2015, $13 million in 2016 and $14 million in 2017.

The Reds have gone on a spending spree to try to turn themselves into an annual contender. They gave right fielder Jay Bruce a $51 million, six-year deal after the 2010 season, when the Reds won the NL Central and got swept by Philadelphia in the playoffs.

Since then, they've given left-hander Aroldis Chapman a $20.25 million, six-year contract, Johnny Cueto a $27 million, four-year deal, and left-hander Sean Marshall a $16.5 million, three-year agreement.

Owner Bob Castellini concluded the only way to make the Reds a consistent contender is to spend to keep the team together rather than losing players through free agency.

"You do that to build a franchise and a foundation for years to come," Castellini said. "So I don't anticipate to continue to have all these huge contracts. But you build your franchise on the people that are in that dugout and on that field."