Phillies' Howard agrees to 5-year, $125M extension

Ryan Howard took a good-natured jab at those fickle fans in baseball-crazy Philadelphia.

"Hopefully, there's no riots taking place back in Philly," he joked of his new megadeal.

Get used to it, City of Brotherly Love. This guy's going to be around for a while.

The slugging first baseman agreed to a five-year, $125-million contract extension yesterday that could keep him with the Phillies until 2017.

Howard, 30, preferred securing his future in Philadelphia to testing free agency in two years - and he's certainly getting his payday. He also felt loyal to the franchise that gave him his chance to reach the big leagues, saying, "That wasn't a very hard decision . . . I tell you what, it's a great feeling to have that security and know where you're going to be."

The guaranteed $25-million average salary in the extension will be baseball's second-highest behind Alex Rodriguez's $27.5-million average under a 10-year contract with the Yankees running through 2017.

Two-time All-Star Howard led the Phillies to two straight trips to the World Series, winning a championship in 2008.