The Royals have announced via press release that they have avoided arbitration with catcher Brett Hayes by agreeing to a one-year deal. Hayes will make $630K with another possible $20K in performance bonuses, according to the Associated Press. Hayes is a client of TWC Sports.
Hayes, 30 next month, batted .278/.278/.611 with a homer in 18 plate appearances for the Royals in 2013. The longtime Marlin batted .233/.279/.480 in 298 plate appearances for the Royals' Triple-A club last season, and his 17 homers at the Triple-A level were the second-most from any catcher in the Pacific Coast League. That speaks to the pop Hayes has in his bat, as does his career .154 isolated power mark (slugging percentage minus batting average).
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected Hayes to earn $900K in 2014. He will have competition in the form of Francisco Pena and Ramon Hernandez in Spring Training, but Hayes figures to be the primary backup for Salvador Perez.
The Royals now have seven remaining arbitration eligible players: Luke Hochevar, Greg Holland, Eric Hosmer, Emilio Bonifacio, Aaron Crow, Tim Collins and Justin Maxwell.
The back up spot behind Perez is Hayes’s to lose.