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A panel of three arbitrators has ruled in favor of agent Dan Lozano, president of MVP Sports Group, against his former partners with the Beverly Hills Sports Council, reports Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal. BHSC had been claiming that Lozano owed the firm $40MM for leaving and taking clients with him, including prominent names such as Joey Votto and Albert Pujols.

As Mullen writes, MLBPA certified agents are prohibited by MLBPA rules to sue one another in federal or state court. Instead, claims filed against one another are brought to a panel of arbitrators, which is overseen by the MLBPA.

Lozano left BHSC after more than 20 years with the firm in 2010, starting up his own agency — MVP Sports. Both Pujols’ 10-year, $240MM contract and Votto’s 10-year, $225MM extension were negotiated by Lozano shortly thereafter, in the 2011-12 offseason.

In addition to Pujols and Votto, MVP Sports represents a number of high-profile MLB players, including Josh Donaldson, Carlos Beltran, Manny Machado, Derek Norris, Nick Swisher, Fernando Rodney and the recently retired Michael Young, among others. A larger list of clients for each agency can be viewed in MLBTR’s Agency Database, which contains agent info for more than 2,000 Major League and Minor League players.

The Brady Aiken saga culminated yesterday with the news that he had undergone Tommy John surgery. Now, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports, the league and players association are preparing to explore ways in which medical information procedures can be adjusted to foreclose such a scenario in the future.

Aiken, of course, was the first overall pick of the Astros. He reportedly had a deal in place until a physical revealed a thinner-than-normal ulnar collateral ligament, leading the team to reduce its offer. Aiken ultimately did not sign. He will be eligible for the coming year’s draft, but will enter it in the midst of a rehab protocol.

There is still plenty of uncertainty as to where things might be headed in terms of the draft. One possibility, per Passan, is that a panel of medical experts would certify some number of draft-eligible players as having clean bills of health. On the other end of the spectrum, a full-fledged combine could take place that, among other things, would result in much more significant medical information going to every team.

Even the less involved of those two poles of the range of possibilities would come with difficulties. Logistics such as draft timing (in relation to the NCAA season) must be addressed. Both sides will have plenty to work through, but it seems from the report as if there is at least broad agreement that some procedural improvements should be considered.

The Marlins could win a playoff spot this season, writes ESPN’s Jayson Stark. They have a terrific young outfield, they made a variety of moves this offseason to upgrade their infield (adding Mike Morse, Dee Gordon and Martin Prado) and rotation (adding Mat Latos and Dan Haren), and they have an extremely high-upside unknown in Jose Fernandez, who’s returning from Tommy John surgery. The Marlins will, clearly, be swimming upstream as they chase a superstar-laden Nationals team, but perhaps a Wild Card isn’t unrealistic. Here’s more from the National League.

• The Diamondbacks could make a move to clear payroll by the end of Spring Training, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. Aaron Hill and Cody Ross are candidates to be dealt, writes Rosenthal. It’s hard to imagine the D-backs would be able to unload much of the $9.5MM left on Ross’ contract, however, and Hill’s $24MM through 2016 might be only somewhat less tricky. Rosenthal suggests the team might be more likely to trade Mark Trumbo in July.
• The Cardinals have been impressed with Jaime Garcia’s work this spring, Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. Garcia is competing with Carlos Martinez and Marco Gonzales for the Cards’ fifth starter job. “Had you and I had this conversation eight weeks ago I don’t think we’d be talking about it in the same way we are right now,” says GM John Mozeliak. “I didn’t know what to expect from him frankly, and everything we’ve seen has been very surprising. And very positive.” Garcia has, of course, had a long string of arm problems, but his strong work in Spring Training puts him in decent shape to make the rotation anyway, since the Cardinals can easily just put Martinez in the bullpen and Gonzales in the rotation at Triple-A Memphis. Having Garcia in the rotation allows them to retain their depth, and Mozeliak says the Cardinals are not interested in trading him.

The MLB collective bargaining agreement contains a provision that allows certain free agents who are signed to minor league contracts to receive a $100K retention bonus if they do not receive a binding promise to be added to the team’s 25-man roster (or the Major League disabled list) five days prior to the season. If the team decides to pay the retention bonus, the player also receives a June 1st opt-out clause. Contracts can permissibly include terms that are more favorable to the player, such as greater retention bonuses and/or earlier opt-out clauses.

Decisions must be made by noon EST on the fifth day prior to Opening Day. If a team does not release an Article XX(B) free agent prior to that point in time, then they must either put the player on the active roster (or DL) to start the year, or be on the hook for the benefits noted above. Last year, numerous XX(B) free agents were either added to the roster or paid the bonus by teams hoping to maintain control over the player.

There are many different ways to become a free agent, but only those players who reach free agency through Article XX(B) and certain international free agents are eligible for this added protection. There are two types of players who can qualify in this manner at the end of a season. (In either case, of course, the player must not already be a free agent; i.e., he must be on a club’s 40-man roster upon the conclusion of the World Series. Thus, John Axford — already added to the 40-man by the Rockies — did not qualify after his late-season outright.) First are those players who have accrued at least six years of Major League service time and are not under contract for the following season. Second are those players with expiring contracts who signed with an MLB club after turning 23 and after playing five seasons in one of the major international leagues. (In the below list, Kawasaki is an example.) In either case, the XX(B) free agenty must sign his minor league deal ten or more days prior to Opening Day to qualify for the added contractual protections.

Here is a list of this year’s crop of Article XX(B) free agents who have signed minor league deals and thus come within the ambit of the rule, as of today. (Several other players likely to land minor league deals could also qualify — including names like Scott Hairston and Ryan Doumit — if they sign in time.)

Angels: Matt Lindstrom

Astros: Roberto Hernandez, Joe Thatcher

Blue Jays: Munenori Kawasaki, Johan Santana, Ramon Santiago

Braves: Kelly Johnson, Jose Veras

Brewers: Chris Perez

Cardinals: Carlos Villanueva

Cubs: Phil Coke

Diamondbacks: Gerald Laird

Dodgers: Mike Adams

Indians: Scott Downs

Mariners: Endy Chavez, Kevin Correia, Franklin Gutierrez, Joe Saunders

Marlins: Reed Johnson, Nick Masset

Nationals: Rich Hill

Padres: Wil Nieves

Rangers: Joe Beimel, Ryan Ludwick, Nate Schierholtz, Jamey Wright

Rays: Alexi Casilla

Red Sox: Felipe Paulino, Humberto Quintero

Reds: Kevin Gregg, Paul Maholm

Royals: Franklin Morales

Tigers: Joel Hanrahan

White Sox: Matt Albers, Jesse Crain, Brad Penny, Geovany Soto

Yankees: Scott Baker, Jared Burton

The NFL’s free agent period will officially begin in less than 24 hours, and a number of big names have already come off the board. Patriots safety Devin McCourty, Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb, and Bills pass rusher Jerry Hughes all re-signed with their respective teams, while the crown jewel of 2015’s free agent class, Ndamukong Suh, appears to be headed to South Beach to join the Dolphins. Plenty of this year’s top 50 free agents are still available, and star cornerback Darrelle Revis is poised to join that group, so check in on Pro Football Rumors this week for all the latest updates!

Octagon Baseball has added a trio of veteran MLB agents with extensive experience in the Dominican Republic, the agency announced. Jay Alou Jr., Brian Mejia, and Ulises Cabrera will join a group led by Alan Nero.

The already-impressive Octagon client list will now feature some notable additional names. Between them, the newly-added agents will bring clients such as Jose Bautista, Ervin Santana, Carlos Martinez, and Yasmany Tomas into the fold. Those players will bolster an international presence that is fronted by Felix Hernandez and also includes Jose Altuve, Victor Martinez, and (most recently) Jung-ho Kang.

The NFL’s franchise tag deadline has passed, and while stars like Dez Bryant, Demaryius Thomas, and Justin Houston received tags from their respective teams, a number of standout players are poised to hit the open market a week from today. Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, safety Devin McCourty, and wideouts Jeremy Maclin and Randall Cobb are among the players who will be free to negotiate with other teams as of Saturday and to sign with new clubs next Tuesday. To prepare for the free agent madness, be sure to check out our breakdown of the market by position, and keep an eye on ProFootballRumors.com for all the latest updates.

While the 2014-15 arbitration process is complete — final results can be found here — you may have noticed that agreements between non-free agent players and teams are still being reported and announced. These deals are being arrived at with players who own 40-man spots but remain shy of the service requirements to reach arbitration eligibility. (I.e., they have less than three years of service and did not qualify as Super Two players.)

Generally, MLBTR does not cover these deals. Not only are there are dozens per team, but they have minimal bearing on the broader market. The reason is simple: the collective bargaining agreement stipulates that teams may simply renew pre-arb players at the league minimum (or any other desired level) if agreement on a price cannot be reached, leaving no obligation for teams to pay more and affording scarcely any leverage to the player. In other words, there is not much to see or think about.

But, as with most things, there are exceptions. Last February, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes reported that the Rockies had drawn the ire of some agents for only spending a few thousand dollars above the minimum. MLBTR’s Zach Links proceeded to undertake a deep dive on the subject, explaining how different teams use varying types of formulas to arrive at pre-arb salaries — many of which are informed by some combination of service time, playing time, and performance.

Sometimes teams choose to go well above the required levels of pay. The two most notable examples — Ryan Howard’s final pre-arb salary of $900K and Mike Trout’s $1MM pact last year — were followed by extensions. It is difficult to know whether those shows of good faith helped pave the way to longer-term deals, but the teams involved (the Phillies and Angels, respectively) obviously were motivated to go above and beyond for players who were coming off of MVP or MVP-type seasons.

In some cases, players and teams are unable to agree upon a deal, leading the team to simply renew the player at its desired value. This is in large part a symbolic matter, though as Zach and fellow MLBTR writer Steve Adams learned last year, the Astros have taken a $5K deduction (as against the team’s offer) when renewing pre-arb players who declined to reach agreement at the team’s price.

Inability to agree upon a price is but one aspect of a team’s relationship with a player, of course, but tension in the pre-arb process is certainly one possible outcome. Interestingly, Trout had his contract renewed without agreement in the season before his huge pre-arb payday, with his agent blasting the team at the time. The sides were ultimately able to come together on a nine-figure deal, with the prior years’ salaries constituting an element of the jockeying in the lead-up to that contract.

It remains to be seen whether this year will feature any particularly interesting cases. But it is worth noting that several of 2014’s top performers — Corey Kluber of the Indians, Anthony Rendon of the Nationals, and Sonny Gray of the Athletics come to mind — remain shy of arbitration eligibility.