Arbitration Roundup: 40 Players To Exchange Figures
2014/01/arbitration-roundup-40-players-to-exchange-figures.htmlAs MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, at least 39 players will be exchanging figures with their clubs after failing to agree upon terms before noon central. … Other prominent players who have yet to agree upon a 2014 salary include Homer Bailey and Aroldis Chapman of the Reds, Brandon Belt of the Giants, David Freese of the Angels, Greg Holland of the Royals, Kenley Jansen of the Dodgers, Jeff Samardzija of the Cubs, Mark Trumbo of the Diamondbacks, and Matt Wieters of the Orioles.
Arbitration Filing Numbers
2014/01/arbitration-filing-numbers.htmlMLBTR's Arbitration Tracker is the place to go to see the arbitration contracts agreed upon thus far, as well as the…… David Freese filed at $6MM while the Angels countered at $4.1MM, tweets Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Friday
2014/01/players-avoiding-arbitration-friday.htmlYou can also check in on our Arbitration Tracker and look at MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz's arbitration projections.
Minor Moves: Joe Beimel, Logan Kensing, Manny Pina
2014/01/minor-moves-logan-kensing-manny-pina.htmlOnly one player remains in DFA limbo at the moment, per MLBTR's DFA Tracker: Carlos Peguero of the Mariners.
MLBTR Originals
2014/01/mlbtr-originals-2-2.htmlJeff Todd, using MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker, provided a two-part roundup (I, II) of Friday's exchange of salary arbitration figures… A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR this past week: Tim Dierkes spoke to Orioles Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Dan Duquette and agents Paul Kinzer and Dan Rosquete about the growing trend of signing six-year minor league free agents to Major League deals despite a lack of big league experience.
Dodgers, Ramirez Remain In Early Stages Of Extension Talks
2014/01/dodgers-ramirez-remain-in-early-stages-of-extension-talks.htmlAs shown in MLBTR's Transactions Tracker, Brian Wilson, J.P. … Clearly, the Dodgers have had their fair share of business to attend to, as since that time they've extended Kershaw, aggressively pursued Masahiro Tanaka and signed five free agents to Major League deals.
Minor Moves: Ricardo Nanita, Travis Buck
2014/01/minor-moves-travis-buck.htmlCarlos Peguero of the Mariners is the only player that is currently in DFA limbo, as can be seen in MLBTR's DFA Tracker.
Phillies Avoid Arbitration With Antonio Bastardo
2014/01/phillies-avoid-arbitration-with-antonio-bastardo.htmlAs MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, Bastardo's salary lands under the midpoint between the two sides' submission amounts.
Indians Notes: Arbitration Hearings, Masterson
2014/01/indians-notes-arbitration-hearings-masterson.htmlAs MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, the Indians (along with the Cubs) lead the league with four unsettled arbitration cases.
Masahiro Tanaka Links: Tuesday
2014/01/masahiro-tanaka-links-tuesday.htmlAnd McTaggart tweets that, in his opinion, the club is a "longshot." Once Tanaka officially comes off the board, baseball is set to experience a rush of important free agent signings that has not been experienced in recent seasons, as MLBTR's Transaction Tracker documents. … We'll keep tabs on today's news right here: In case you missed it from this morning, ESPN.com's Buster Olney wrote an Insider piece that profiles Tanaka agent Casey Close of Excel Sports Management.
Minor Moves: Valdez, Graham, Iribarren, Morales, Jackson, Hensley
2014/01/minor-moves-clay-hensley.htmlOne player appears in MLBTR's DFA Tracker with an unresolved case: Carlos Peguero of the Mariners.
AL Notes: Sano, Figgins, Washington, Rangers
2014/01/al-central-notes-sano-figgins-indians.htmlBut how did Rakuten build that championship team, when the franchise was not even formed until 2005? Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker details the rise of the Golden Eagles, which featured the use of top draft picks on pitchers while the club added power from MLB castaways like Andruw Jones and Casey McGehee. … "I expect that to continue going forward." Meanwhile, Daniels says that Texas is working the free agent market for pitching depth, but is not looking at top-of-the-market arms, Wilson further tweets.
Yankees Sign Masahiro Tanaka
2014/01/yankees-to-sign-masahiro-tanaka.htmlAdditionally, as shown in MLBTR's Transaction Tracker, they've brought back Hiroki Kuroda (one year, $16MM) and Derek Jeter (one year, $12MM) and signed Matt Thornton (two years, $7MM), Brendan Ryan (two years, $5MM), Kelly Johnson (one year, $3MM) and Brian Roberts (one year, $2MM). … Tanaka is represented by Excel Sports Management -- the same agents that negotiated Clayton Kershaw's record-setting extension.
Quick Hits: Sizemore, Tanaka
2014/01/quick-hits-sizemore-tanaka.htmlPatrick Newman of NPB Tracker posted Tanaka's actual pitch counts from last season, which he found in an Isao Chiba article from Shukan Baseball.
Cubs, Travis Wood Avoid Arbitration
2014/01/cubs-travis-wood-avoid-arbitration.htmlAs shown in MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker, Wood filed for a $4.25MM salary, and the Cubs countered at $3.5MM. … Wood, who has three years, four days of service time will be eligible for arbitration twice more before hitting free agency following the 2016 campaign.
Giants Agree To Two-Year Deal With Joaquin Arias
2014/01/giants-agree-to-two-year-deal-with-joaquin-arias.htmlBrandon Belt is the Giants' lone remaining arbitration case, as can be seen in MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker. … With this extension, the Giants have bought out each of Arias' remaining years of arbitration eligibility, meaning he will be a free agent upon its completion.
Phillies Avoid Arbitration With Ben Revere
2014/01/phillies-avoid-arbitration-with-ben-revere.htmlAs MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, the Phils paid out a total of $14.113MM, exceeding their total team projection of $12.7MM. … He will pass through arbitration three more times before qualifying for free agency in 2018.
AL Central Notes: Twins, Tigers
2014/01/al-central-notes.htmlAs the MLBTR Arbitration Tracker shows, Avila filed for $5.35MM, while the Tigers countered with $3.75MM…
Extension Candidate: Jason Kipnis
2014/01/extension-candidate-jason-kipnis.htmlAccording to MLBTR's Extension Tracker, no second baseman with between two and three years of service time has signed an extension since Ben Zobrist in 2010. … How valuable Kipnis' free agent seasons will be, though, remains to be seen.
Rays Sign Grant Balfour
2014/01/rays-to-sign-grant-balfour.htmlAs the list of free agent closers shows (via MLBTR's Free Agent Tracker), Balfour slots in between the two-year deals of Joaquin Benoit ($15.5MM from the Padres) and Edward Mujica ($9.5MM from the Red Sox).
Free Agent Notes: Angels, Phillies, Yankees
2014/01/free-agent-notes-angels-phillies-yankees.htmlAs MLBTR's 2014 Free Agent Tracker shows, Philadelphia has not entered such a pact since inking Roberto Hernandez on December 18. … Draft pick compensation is hanging over the market for several prominent, unsigned free agents -- namely, Ervin Santana, Ubaldo Jimenez, Stephen Drew, Nelson Cruz, and Kendrys Morales.
Reds Avoid Arbitration With Aroldis Chapman
2014/01/reds-avoid-arbitration-with-aroldis-chapman.htmlAs shown in MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker, Chapman and Homer Bailey were the only two Reds players to exchange figures with the team, and Bailey is now the only unresolved case on GM Walt Jocketty's plate.
Cubs Avoid Arbitration With Justin Ruggiano
2014/01/cubs-avoid-arbitration-with-justin-ruggiano.htmlAs MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, Ruggiano settled for just under the midpoint between his $2.45MM filing number and the team's $1.6MM counter.
Free Agent Contract Trends: 2007-08 To Present
2014/01/free-agent-contract-trends-2007-08-to-present.htmlAccording to MLBTR's Free Agent Tracker (after removing non-guaranteed deals and the few exercised options or extensions that are reflected), $1.88B has been committed through this year's market. … But just how dramatic, really, are the increases? Utilizing ESPN.com's free agent tracker, Dave Cameron of Fangraphs wrote yesterday that free agent deals had jumped from an average annual value of $4.87MM in 2009-10 to a $9.65MM rate in the present signing season.
Minor Moves: Cesar Carrillo
2014/02/minor-moves-cesar-carrillo.htmlPer MLBTR's DFA Tracker, there are four players currently in DFA limbo: Emilio Bonifacio (Royals), Everett Teaford (Royals), Chaz Roe…