Players Avoiding Arbitration: 11/21/25

The deadline for teams to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players is this afternoon at 4pm CT. Throughout the day, we’ll surely see a handful of arb-eligible players agree to terms with their clubs to avoid a hearing.

These so-called “pre-tender deals” usually, although not always, involve players who were borderline non-tender candidates. Rather than run the risk of being cut loose, they can look to sign in the lead-up to the deadline. Those salaries often come in a little below projections, since these players tend to have less leverage because of the uncertainty about whether they’ll be offered a contract at all.

Under the 2022-26 collective bargaining agreement, players who sign to avoid an arbitration hearing are guaranteed full termination pay. That’s a change from prior CBAs, when teams could release an arb-eligible player before the season began and would only owe a prorated portion of the contract. This was done to incentivize teams and players to get deals done without going to a hearing.

All salary projections in this post come via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. This post will be updated throughout the day as deals are announced and/or reported. Salary figures are from The Associated Press unless otherwise noted.

• The Astros signed right-hander Enyel De Los Santos to a one-year deal and outfielder Taylor Trammell to a split deal, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Per Chandler Rome of The Athletic, De Los Santos gets $1.6MM, plus a $100K bonus if he appears in 60 games, while Trammell $900K if in the majors and $500K in the minors. They were projected for $2.1MM and $900K respectively.
• The Athletics announced that they have signed right-hander Luis Medina and left-hander Ken Waldichuk to one-year deals. Medina gets $835K, while Waldichuk comes in at $825K.
• The Braves announced that they have signed infielder Vidal Bruján, infielder Mauricio Dubón, outfielder Eli White and left-handers Joey Wentz and José Suarez for the 2026 season. Bruján’s deal was announced as a split contract; he’ll make $850K in MLB and $500K in the minors. Dubon will make $6.1MM, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post, right around his $5.8MM projection. Suarez gets $900K, per Ari Alexander of 7 News, below his $1.5MM projection. White and Wentz also get $900K salaries.
• The Brewers announced that they have signed first baseman Jake Bauers for 2026. He’ll make $2.7MM, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post. He was projected for $2MM.
• The Giants have agreed to a one-year deal with right-hander JT Brubaker, per Justice selos Santos of Mercury News. He commands a $1.82MM salary.
• The Guardians have agreed to one-year deals with outfielder Nolan Jones, catcher/designated hitter David Fry and right-hander Matt Festa, per Zack Meisel of The Athletic. In a follow-up, Meisel also provides the salary figures. Jones will make $2MM, Fry $1.375MM and Festa $1MM. They were projected for $2MM, $1.2MM and $1MM respectively.
• The Mets and outfielder Tyrone Taylor have agreed at $3.8MM, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, right around his $3.6MM projection.
• The Nationals announced they have signed catcher Riley Adams to a one-year deal. It’s a split deal that pays $1MM in the big leagues and $500K in the minors.
• The Orioles and right-hander Félix Bautista have agreed to a $2.25MM contract, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. He was projected for $2.1MM.
• The Padres announced they signed catcher Luis Campusano to a one-year deal. He’ll make $900K next year, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic. He was projected for $1MM.
• The Phillies have agreed to a split deal with catcher Garrett Stubbs, reports Matt Gelb of The Athletic. Stubbs will make $925K in the majors and $575K in the minors. The major league salary is an exact match for his projection. The Phils announced that they also signed catcher Rafael Marchán. He’ll make $860K, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. He was projected for $1MM.
• The Rangers announced they signed outfielder Sam Haggerty to a one-year deal. It’s a $1.25MM contract.
• The Rays and right-hander Cole Sulser have settled at $1.05MM, per Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times. Sulser was projected for $1.2MM. According to the AP, it’s a split deal that pays at a $600K rate in the minors.
• The Reds and left-hander Sam Moll have agreed at $875K, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post. He was projected for $1.2MM. His 2026 deal also has $150K in potential incentives — $50K each for 45, 55 and 65 appearances.
• The Royals and infielder Jonathan India agreed to an $8MM deal. You can read more about that in this post.
• The Tigers and infielder/outfielder Matt Vierling agreed at $3.225MM, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post. He was projected for $3.1MM. Detroit signed right-hander Beau Brieske at $1.1575MM, per Heyman, right around his $1.3MM projection. The Tigers signed catcher Jake Rogers at $3.05MM, per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, right around his $2.9MM projection.
• The Twins signed right-hander Justin Topa to a one-year, $1.225MM deal. MLBTR covered that earlier in this post. The Twins turned down a $2MM club option for Topa, giving him a $225K buyout instead, but he remained under club control via arb. Between the buyout and next year’s salary, he’ll collect $1.45MM. Darren Wolfson of KSTP reported Topa’s 2026 salary. Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic adds that the guarantee is broken down into a $1MM salary in 2026 followed by a $225K buyout on a $5MM mutual option. The buyout can rise to $300K via unspecified incentives.
• The White Sox announced that they have agreed to terms on a $900K deal with outfielder Derek Hill. He was projected for $1MM.
• The Yankees and infielder Oswaldo Cabrera have agreed to a $1.2MM contract, per Jack Curry of Yes Network, an exact match for his projection. The Yanks have also signed right-hander Clarke Schmidt to a $4.5MM deal, per Robert Murray of FanSided, right around his $4.9MM projection.

Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images