Photo Credit: Kirsten Schmitt/Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers pitchers and catchers have reported to spring training but, not long after arrival, one learned he won’t be making as much money this season as he was hoping.
Eligible for arbitration for the first time this winter as a Super Two player, Josh Hader requested a $6.4 million salary for 2020, a figure that would have been the highest ever for a relief pitcher in his first year of arbitration. The Brewers offered $4.1 million and won the case, at least in part because of Hader’s non-conventional usage pattern: Hader has without question been one of the best relievers in baseball in recent years, but the Brewers’ tendency to use him in the middle innings of games means he didn’t record as many saves as pitchers who work exclusively in the ninth inning.
Hader and Craig Counsell both expressed frustration with the decision and the process that led to it: Hader’s case was the latest in a long track record of arbitration panels making decisions based on traditional, often outdated statistics in place of modern measures. With Brent Suter settling his outstanding case on Sunday, the Brewers have cleared their arbitration slate for this winter, but in so doing, they may have further stoked the fires of discontentment heading into negotiations on baseball’s next collective bargaining agreement.
MLB’s five-year deal with the Players Association expires following the 2021 season, and the arbitration system is just one of many concerns the players may look to address when negotiating the next one. Another came into full focus in recent months, as an arbitrator denied Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant’s grievance related to service time manipulation. The Cubs kept Bryant in the minors prior to his debut in 2015 just long enough to ensure he would not accumulate a full season of service time, delaying his free agency by a full year. As part of the next CBA, the players association may look to address this issue and prevent the next generation of stars from having their debuts and free agencies delayed for non-baseball reasons.
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Meanwhile, the collective bargaining agreement (and a possible work stoppage) came up often last winter as a delayed and stagnant free agent market led to many veteran players struggling to find employment for the 2019 season. Those concerns were not as prevalent this winter as the free agent market moved at a more reasonable pace and more teams were spending, but the past challenges veteran players faced are unlikely to be forgotten. The hard feelings over slow free agent markets could also be compounded by the fact that most teams’ union representatives are the same veteran players most likely to be impacted by clubs’ unwillingness to pay free agents.
The players will likely also be motivated to drive a hard bargain in the next CBA negotiations after being widely maligned for their strategy in reaching the current agreement. The issues discussed above were present but largely unresolved five years ago, as players successfully attained full-time clubhouse chefs and a few extra in-season off days but did not make major strides on any of the agreement’s more fundamental points.
Despite the players’ increasing frustration, a work stoppage remains unlikely for a pair of reasons:
- First, both the players and owners have a lot to lose financially. Despite the game’s challenges, revenues remain at or near all-time highs, creating a strong incentive for both sides to ensure games continue.
- Second, the owners have something to offer that would benefit both sides greatly. Expansion would create dozens of new major league roster spots for players while also generating a massive one-time revenue boost for owners when selling new franchises.
Even with that clear incentive to reach a new agreement, however, the players and owners still have a wide array of issues to resolve before ratifying a new agreement. If the players decide to take a harder line than they did five years ago, these negotiations could get ugly before they get resolved.
