SYRACUSE - The Washington Nationals signed a two-year agreement Monday to make the Syracuse Chiefs their Triple-A affiliate.

The Chiefs' board of directors voted Saturday to sign with the Nationals over the Florida Marlins. Officials announced the deal at a news conference at Alliance Bank Stadium, where the Chiefs play their home games.

“Chiefs fans will soon discover that we are deep into a process during which we have reinvigorated both our scouting department and player development system,” Nationals President Stan Kasten said in a statement. “The results thus far have been beyond our expectations.”

Syracuse had been the top minor-league affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays for 31 years, but the relationship suffered through the franchise's long history of losing.

Nationals general manager Jim Bowden said he expects that to change.

“Our farm system is such that our prospects are going to start reaching the Triple-A level this year, and we think within the next couple of years that we'll be able to put a championship-caliber team on this field,” Bowden said.

The Chiefs had been set to court the New York Mets, but the Mets instead decided on Buffalo, a larger, more successful market. They signed a two-year player development contract with the Bisons on Monday,

The Nationals had been in Columbus, Ohio, but the Cleveland Indians moved their Triple-A team from Buffalo to Columbus. Washington's other choices were New Orleans or Las Vegas.