Pirates Avoid Arbitration With Melancon, Harrison, Snider, Watson
4:21pm: Pittsburgh has also settled with outfielder Travis Snider for $2.1MM, as Mike Perchick of WAPT was first to report (Twitter link). That is just $100K short of the MLBTR/Matt Swartz projection.
Pittsburgh has also reached agreement with reliever Tony Watson for $1.75MM, tweets Perchick. That figure falls a quarter-million shy of Watson’s $2MM projection. And Perchick also reports that Sean Rodriguez and the Pirates have avoided arb with a $1.9MM deal for 2015 — $100K shy of his projection.
2:52pm: The Pirates have agreed to a $5.4MM salary with closer Mark Melancon, according to Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). Additionally, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that Josh Harrison will receive $2.8MM on the heels of a breakout 2014 campaign.
While Melancon falls shy of his $7.6MM projection, Swartz explained in an Arbitration Breakdown post that Melancon’s unique statistical profile “broke” his projection algorithm in a way similar to Craig Kimbrel last offseason (when Swartz first wrote about “The Kimbrel Rule“). As Swartz explained in that post, he personally considered Melancon to be a Kimbrel-esque exception to his model and expected a salary in the $5.6MM to $6.1MM range.
The 29-year-old Melancon was dominant for a second straight season in 2014, registering a 1.90 ERA with 9.0 K/9, 1.4 BB/9, 33 saves and 14 holds in 71 innings. That rare combination of ERA, saves and holds led the projection model to overshoot Melancon’s salary despite the fact that there’s no historical precedent for a raise of that magnitude for a relief pitcher (hence Swartz’s followup post and personalized expectations for Melancon).
As for Harrison, the 27-year-old broke out with a surprisingly excellent season that landed him ninth in NL MVP voting. Harrison batted .315/.347/.490 with 13 homers and 18 stolen bases, playing strong defense all over the diamond — second, short, third, corner outfield — before settling in at third base and displacing incumbent Pedro Alvarez. Harrison figures to man the hot corner on an everyday basis in 2015. He topped his $2.2MM projection by a hefty $600K.
Mariners Avoid Arb With Jackson, Morrison, Ackley, Furbush
4:10pm: Jackson will earn $7.7MM, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets.
2:02pm: The Mariners announced today that they’ve avoided arbitration with Austin Jackson, Logan Morrison, Dustin Ackley and Charlie Furbush. The team also confirmed its previously reported agreement with Justin Ruggiano, who also avoided arbitration.
Terms of Jackson’s signing are not yet known, though he projected to earn $8MM in arbitration, according to MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Meanwhile, Mike Perchick of WAPT has the salary figures for each of the others (All Twitter links). Morrison will earn $2.725MM with the ability to earn an extra $25K for reaching 500 and 600 plate appearances. Ackley settled at $2.6MM and will receive an additional $50K upon reaching 500 plate appearances. Furbush is penciled in for a $1.3MM salary that contains no incentives or bonuses.
Morrison, Ackley and Furbush were projected to receive respective salaries of $2.6MM, $2.8MM and $1MM. Meanwhile, the Mariners noted that Tom Wilhelmsen is still arb-eligible, suggesting that the two sides have exchanged or will exchange figures. A deal could still be agreed upon before a hearing, however.
Padres Avoid Arbitration With Kennedy, Ross, Alonso
3:24pm: Ross will earn $5.25MM in 2015, reports MLB.com’s Corey Brock (on Twitter). He’d been projected to earn $5.7MM.
2:09pm: The Padres now announce that they’ve avoided arb with all of their eligible players, including Ross (all others had been previously reported). Terms of Ross’ deal are not yet known, other than the fact that it’s a one-year agreement.
1:40pm: Multiple reports indicate that the Padres and right-hander Ian Kennedy have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $9.85MM salary for 2015, with Mike Perchick of WAPT in New Jersey being the first to report the deal (Twitter link). Kennedy, who is entering his final year of team control prior to free agency, was projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $10.3MM. Though the righty’s name was oft-mentioned in trade talks, it appears now that he’ll join Andrew Cashner and Tyson Ross atop the club’s rotation.
Perchick also reports that the Padres have avoided arbitration with Yonder Alonso, agreeing to a one-year, $1.65MM pact. Alonso was projected to earn $1.6MM.
Blue Jays Re-Sign Munenori Kawasaki
The Blue Jays announced that they’ve re-signed popular infielder Munenori Kawasaki to a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training.
Kawasaki, a fan favorite due to his affable nature and quirky sense of humor, has batted .244/.327/.302 in 563 plate appearances for the Blue Jays over the past two seasons. The versatile 33-year-old is known more for his glove than his bat and is capable of handling second base, shortstop and third base.
Phillies Claim Jordan Danks From White Sox
The Phillies announced that they have claimed outfielder Jordan Danks off waivers from the White Sox. Danks, the 28-year-old brother of left-handed pitcher John Danks, is an outfielder capable of playing all three outfield positions. He was designated for assignment when the White Sox signed Emilio Bonifacio.
Reds, Mike Leake Avoid Arbitration
The Reds have avoided arbitration with pitcher Mike Leake, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. The two sides agreed to a one-year, $9.775MM deal.
Leake, 27, was projected to earn $9.5MM by Matt Swartz’s model. The new deal represents a healthy pay bump for the right-hander, who earned $5.9MM in 2014.
Leake pitched to a 3.70 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in 33 starts last season, his third straight campaign with 30+ starts. Advanced metrics such as xFIP (3.49) were kinder to him than ERA last season. This was Leake’s final year of arbitration eligibility and he’ll be able to hit the open market next winter.
White Sox Avoid Arbitration With Samardzija, Flowers
The White Sox have avoided arbitration with righty Jeff Samardzija and backstop Tyler Flowers, Dan Hayes of CSNChicago reports on Twitter. This pair, along with the already-signed Dayan Viciedo, represented the largest expected arb payouts for Chicago.
Samardzija, acquired earlier in the winter from the Athletics, will earn $9.8MM in his final pass through arbitration, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. That represents a near match for the $9.5MM projected by MLBTR’s Matt Swartz. His relatively manageable pay rate, in spite of an excellent 2014, shows the importance of having a high first-year arb salary to build from.
Flowers will earn $2.675MM according to Mike Perchick of WAPT (Twitter link), while Swartz had pegged him to earn a shade over $2MM in his first season of eligibility. He had a solid overall year at bat in 2014, slashing .241/.297/.396 in 442 plate appearances and swatting 15 home runs.
Remember to check MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker for the latest updates.
Orioles Avoid Arbitration With Wieters, Davis, Tillman, Matusz
The Orioles have avoided arbitration by agreeing on one year deals with three players, according to reports. Catcher Matt Wieters, corner infielder/outfielder Chris Davis, righty Chris Tillman, and lefty Brian Matusz all have reached terms for 2015.
After missing most of 2014, Wieters will earn $8.3MM in his final year of arbitration, according to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter). That represents a $600K bump over his salary last year, a much lower figure than would have been expected coming into the season. The 28-year-old saw only 112 plate appearances, slashing an impressive .308/.339/.500 in that short sample, before succumbing to right elbow issues that ultimately required Tommy John surgery.
Davis also will receive a much lower raise than seemed likely before 2014, in his case due to performance issues and a late-season suspension. He will take home $12MM, up from $10.35MM last year, per Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz was right on the mark with a $11.8MM projection for the slugger. Davis can also earn bonuses of $150K upon his 500th and 575th trips to the plate and $50K each for an All-Star appearance, Gold Glove award, or Silver Slugger nod.
Tillman, meanwhile, has settled for $4.315MM, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets. Connolly was first to report (on Twitter) that a deal had been reached. The 26-year-old becomes the second-highest-paid first-time arb-eligible starter in MLB history. As Swartz wrote recently, Tillman seemed likely to come in just under the record, and fall shy of the $5.4MM projection that Swartz’s model produced.
As for Matusz, he will play for $3.2MM next year, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. That constitutes a nice increase over Swartz’s projection of $3.2MM. Soon to turn 28, Matusz was again effective from the pen last year, tossing 51 2/3 frames of 3.48 ERA ball.
Marlins Avoid Arbitration With Cishek, Gordon
The Marlins and closer Steve Cishek have dodged arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $6.65MM pact, tweets Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds that Dee Gordon has also agreed to terms on a $2.5MM deal for next season. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected respective salaries of $6.9MM and $2.5MM for the pair.
Nationals Avoid Arbitration With Doug Fister
The Nationals and Doug Fister have agreed to an $11.4MM salary for his final year of club control, thereby avoiding arbitration, per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Fister’s salary is an exact match with the projection of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.