Well over 100 major league players will file for arbitration on Tuesday, setting in motion a series of negotiations that could last more than a month.
MLB salary arbitration schedule, filing dates & more
Fewer than 50 arbitration cases over the last 10 years have gone to the hearing phase, which runs from Feb. 1 through Feb. 20.
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Three days after the players file, teams can begin exchanging figures with them. A large chunk of arbitration cases are settled early in the process, and in recent years, it has become rare for the negotiations to extend beyond January. Last season, just three of the 146 players who filed ended up reaching the hearing phase, which takes place from Feb. 1 through Feb. 20. and is mediated by a three-person panel.
In 2013, no hearings took place. It was the first time since 1974 that all cases were settled before that point, according to Maury Brown’s MLB Salary Arbitration Scoreboard.
Fewer than 50 total hearings have taken place since 2005, and a large reason for that is the ugliness that often arises in the negotiations. The sessions can last in excess of three hours, according to Brown, and half of that consists of the club arguing why a player isn’t worth his asking price.
In odd years, like 2015, all hearings will take place in Phoenix, Ariz., while in even years all hearings are in the other spring training locale of Florida.
David Price, Jeff Samardzija, Chris Davis and Doug Fister are among a talented group of players expected to file for arbitration this year.
Arbitration schedule
Jan. 13: Filing date
Jan. 16: Salary figure exchange date
Feb. 1-20: Arbitration hearings (this year, in Phoenix, Ariz.)
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