Arbitration in the MLB can truly be a nightmare for teams. The Atlanta Braves recognized this and decided to come to an agreement with Melky Cabrera in order to avoid him going to arbitration.
The Braves announced that they have agreed to a 1-year, $3.1 million deal with Cabrera.
This was a good move by the Braves because Cabrera could have easily gotten more than $3.1 million due to his solid play on the field. Last season, Cabrera earned $1.4 million and had a .274 batting average with the Yankees. I also believe that by getting this deal done, the two sides have shown mutual respect for one another.
4 replies on “No Arbitration Between Melky, Braves”
Can you provide the reasons why he would have been paid more in arbitration? Do you have any player comparisons. I really doubt Melky would have just bent over for the Braves to respect. Things like possible midpoints, comparisons and evidence would make this article much more constructive to people trying to understand the nature of arbitration.
I see where you are coming from so I’ll try to shed a little light on this case. One comparison is Dan Uggla. Although not an outfielder, Uggla’s numbers were similar to those of Cabrera’s.
In 2008, Uggla hit .260 with 32 homers and 92 RBIs. Uggla won his arbitration case in January 2009 for 1-year, $5.35 million.
In 2009, Cabrera hit .274 with 13 homers and 68 RBIs. Cabrera was consistent with those numbers in the postseason (this carries some more weight).
So even if Cabrera won his arbitration hearing and was awarded let’s say $4 million, the Braves still saved some money.
And as for the respect portion of my article, what I mean’t by that is that the two sides realized that sometimes arbitration hearings can get in the way of training. So instead of creating a distraction, they worked out a deal to keep things smooth.
Dominic —
I’m not so sure that respect was involved moreso than the understanding of the arbitration process. The arbitration process involves each side picking a figure. Then the arbiter picks whichever figure he feels is most fitting for the player. The arbiter cannot award any middle ground. When each side goes to the arbiter they must each make their argument. Thus, the team probably 1) didnt want to risk losing and having to pay Cabrera’s number and 2) realized its counterproductive for them to have to go in and list all of Cabrera’s faults.
Not to say that the sides dont respect each other. I just think these factors may have played a bigger role than you mentioned.
Ryan, great point…thanks.