The MLB offseason is in its second week and 2 p.m. PT Monday is an important date on the calendar as players are required to decide on accepting or rejecting a qualifying offer. Once that passes and the Winter Meetings approach, the hot stove is sure to heat up.
For the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kenley Jansen, Justin Turner, Rich Hill, Josh Reddick and Joe Blanton, among others, became free agents. The Dodgers extended the one-year, $17.2 million qualifying offer to Jansen and Turner.
As for players who are eligible for salary arbitration, the Dodgers’ group consists of: Yasmani Grandal, Louis Coleman, Luis Avilan, Scott Van Slyke, Chris Hatcher, Alex Wood and Josh Fields, as well as the recently-acquired Vidal Nuno.
Chin-Hui Tsao was included with the aforementioned players, but he was removed from the 40-man roster and sent outright to Triple-A Oklahoma City last week.
Via MLBTradeRumors.com are projected 2017 arbitration salaries for the eight eligible Dodgers:
Yasmani Grandal (4.115) – $5.3MM
Louis Coleman (4.018) – $1.5MM
Luis Avilan (3.146) – $1.5MM
Scott Van Slyke (3.151) – $1.3MM
Chris Hatcher (3.146) – $1.4MM
Alex Wood (3.123) – $2.0MM
Josh Fields (3.092) – $1.2MM
Vidal Nuno (3.015) – $1.1MM
Yasiel Puig was eligible to file for arbitration due to him accruing enough Major League service time, but he decided against doing so. That was hardly a surprise given his down year, as it was unlikely the arbitration process would net Puig more than the $6.5 million in salary his contract calls for in 2017.
Last year the Dodgers avoided arbitration with all of their players who were eligible — Avilan, Grandal, Hatcher, Jansen, Turner and Van Slyke. Relief pitchers Lisalverto Bonilla and Juan Nicasio were non-tendered, and became free agents.
The deadline to tender a contract to arbitration-eligible players is Friday, Dec. 2. The deadline to file for arbitration will be some point in the middle of January, with each side then submitting one salary figure a few days later.
Sides are permitted to continue negotiating even after filing for arbitration and exchanging figures. Arbitration hearings will be held in February in front of a three-person panel. The Dodgers’ last hearing was in 2007 with reliever Joe Beimel.
Another important date this offseason is Dec. 1, as that is the date that baseball’s current collective bargaining agreement expires. If the MLB cannot work out a new deal with the MLBPA by that date, it may result in a lockout.
