Stephen Strasburg

Stephen Strasburg, the top pick of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft, agreed to a record deal with the Washington Nationals on Monday.

With 77 seconds left on the clock, the Washington Nationals got their man.

The Nationals guaranteed San Diego State right-hander Stephen Strasburg $15.1 million -- shattering the record payment to a draft pick -- in an agreement with agent Scott Boras just ahead of a midnight deadline on the East Coast.

"It was an amicable but anxious time at the finish," Nationals acting General Manager Mike Rizzo said on a conference call that started at 12:45 a.m. in Washington. "We did get the deal signed at 11:58 and 43 seconds."

The Nationals assured Strasburg, the top pick in the June draft, of $4.6 million more than the previous record, the $10.5 million given to Mark Prior by the Chicago Cubs in 2001.