Recapping 2024 MLB Arbitration

Michael Ginnitti
Michael Ginnitti, Managing Editor & NFL/MLB ExpertJanuary 12, 2024
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#pete alonso #juan soto #devin williams #corbin burnes
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MLB’s 2024 Arbitration deadline has come and gone, leaving behind 22 players who have exchanged numbers with their respective teams. We’ll detail a few of the numbers below, including thoughts on what it may mean for a more long-term extension in the near future.

RELATED: Spotrac’s 2024 Arbitration Tracker

 

Juan Soto (OF, Yankees)

1 year, $31,000,000

The Yankees knew two things when they acquired Soto last month: 1) A long-term extension was out of the question 2) Anything less than Shohei Ohtani’s $30M arbitration salary was out of the question.

Scott Boras’ latest prize product will now play out the balance of the 2024 season on an historic $31M salary in New York, compiling a ridiculous $79.6M 4-year payout through his arbitration process (easily the most ever).

Soto now gets a chance to showcase himself one last time on baseball’s biggest stage, with aspirations of a $400M-$500M free agent contract in his immediate future. The 25-year-old now values near $39M per year with this latest arbitration salary on the books.

Pete Alonso (1B, Mets)

1 year, $20,500,000

Like Soto, Alonso enters his final year of team control as a member of the Boras Corporation - a death sentence for current team contract extension hopes. Polar Bear Pete rounds out his arbitration career with a $6M raise over his 2023 compensation, putting together a $42.4M payout across his last 3 seasons.

Mathematically, this puts Alonso on pace for a free agent contract at around $34M per year. We recently went into great detail as to why this type of contract could be impossible for Pete to lock down.

So what’s plausible for Alonso on a long-term basis? Another big power season in Queens should secure him over $250M in total value, with 8 years a likely term offer at this stage (29-years-old).

Corbin Burnes (SP, Brewers)

1 year, $15,637,000

Baseball’s top trade candidate (thanks in large part to a messy arbitration process in 2023), didn’t mess around too much this time around, locking in a $5.6M raise from the Brewers before Thursday’s deadline.

The $15.6M salary puts Burnes on pace for a $26M per year deal in free agency next winter, with Aaron Nola’s $172M deal in Philly a likely number to latch on to in the coming months.

Devin Williams (RP, Brewers)

1 year, $7,250,000 + option

In a bit of a surprise move, Williams removed himself from the arbitration filing process, agreeing to a near $4M raise over his 2023 salary, while attaching a $10.5 club option (plus escalators) to his 3rd and final arbitration season in 2025. It’s a strange move for a player that could establish himself as one of the best closers in baseball this year, as Williams may have left a few million dollars on the table for 2025 by locking in early, but staying out of a messy arbitration process could have been good enough reason to agree to this type of arrangement.

He’ll be keeping a very close eye on Josh Hader’s free agent contract this winter, a player who suppressed Williams’ ability to thrive early on in his career. Hader is largely expected to surpass Edwin Diaz’s $20M per year mark with his upcoming contract, re-establishing the closer market once again.

The Unsettled

With Devin Williams reversing course, 22 players are now scheduled to take their arbitration matter to the courts. Filing gaps range from Adolis Garcia ($1.9M) to Casey Mize ($25,000).

Player POS TEAM AGE ARB TYPE PLAYER
FILED		 TEAM
FILED
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B TOR 25 Super-2-3 $19.9M $18.05M
Luis Arraez 2B MIA 27 Super-2-3 $12M $10.6M
J.D. Davis 3B SF 31 Super-2-4 $6.9M $6.55M
Tommy Edman SS STL 29 Arb 2 $6.95M $6.5M
Austin Hays LF BAL 28 Arb 2 $6.3M $5.85M
Adolis García RF TEX 31 Arb 1 $6.9M $5M
Tanner Scott RP MIA 29 Arb 3 $5.7M $5.15M
Taylor Ward LF LAA 30 Super-2-2 $4.8M $4.3M
Harold Ramirez RF TB 29 Super-2-3 $4.3M $3.8M
Alec Bohm 1B PHI 27 Arb 1 $4M $3.4M
Jonathan India 2B CIN 27 Arb 1 $4M $3.2M
Ryan O'Hearn 1B BAL 30 Arb 3 $3.8M $3.2M
Mauricio Dubon 2B HOU 29 Super-2-2 $3.5M $3M
Jason Adam RP TB 32 Super-2-2 $3.25M $2.7M
Jazz Chisholm CF MIA 26 Arb 1 $2.9M $2.625M
Daniel Coulombe RP BAL 34 Arb 3 $2.4M $2.2M
Cionel Perez RP BAL 28 Arb 1 $1.4M $1.1M
Jose Suarez SP LAA 26 Arb 1 $1.35M $925k
Nick Gordon SS MIN 28 Super-2-1 $1.25M $900k
Jacob Webb RP BAL 30 Arb 1 $1M $925k
Phil Bickford RP NYM 28 Super-2-1 $900k $815k
Casey Mize SP DET 27 Arb 1 $840k $815k

#pete alonso #juan soto #devin williams #corbin burnes
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