Mike Minor has won his arbitration hearing versus the Braves, reports MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (on Twitter). Minor will earn $5.6MM as opposed to the $5.1MM figure submitted by the team, as shown in MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker. Minor, a Jet Sports Management client, had been projected to earn $5.1MM by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
Minor, who turned 27 this past December, was plagued by shoulder issues in an injury-shortened 2014 campaign. The left-hander worked to a 4.77 ERA with 7.4 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 40.6 percent ground-ball rate in 145 1/3 innings with Atlanta last year. Those numbers were a far cry from the very strong 3.21 ERA he posted in 204 1/3 innings in a much healthier 2013 campaign.
David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution was among the reporters to discuss the arbitration hearing with Minor today (video link). Minor said the hearing process took roughly four hours, and he holds no hard feelings toward the Braves organization, understanding that the process was merely business. In fact, he spoke with Braves officials who were representing the team upon completion of the hearing. “They all say ’good luck — hope you have a great year,’ so it’s nothing personal,” Minor said. The lefty added that his shoulder feels 100 percent and he’s slated for a bullpen session the second day. Minor discussed feeling behind and feeling weak as he entered Spring Training last season, noting how strong he feels in comparison this year.
Minor will receive a nice $1.75MM bump from his $3.85MM salary in his second trip through the arbitration process. A Super Two player, Minor will be eligible for arbitration twice more before hitting the open market upon completion of the 2017 campaign. That timeline has him slated to hit free agency heading into his age-30 season, which should set him up for a nice payday if he can rediscover his 2013 form now that his shoulder woes appear to be in the past.
