What Is Salary Abritration
Kevin Youkilis, Javier Lopez and Kyle Snyder have all filed for salary arbitration. So what exactly does that mean? And should we care? The short answer is that, as a fan, it really doesn’t matter at all. They will still be on the team next year so you don’t have to throw out your Kyle Snyder jersey (do these exist? I want one) or your Youuuuuuuk t shirt. All three will be on the team, or at least on the roster, next season. Arbitration is simply a way for players to get more money and the rules governing it are all part of the collective bargaining agreement.
The long answer is just that - quite long. Like most rules in baseball, they get very complicated. Salary Arbitration started in 1973, about the same time as free agency started and basically, is one of the things that have made baseball players multi-millionaire premiere athletes rather than the indentured servant model of employment that was in place before this. If a player has been in the major leagues for 2 years (you get credit for a ‘year’ of service by being on the active roster for 172 days), he becomes eligible for arbitration. It is basically a form of negotiation, where both the employee (player) and management (the team) both submit their recommendations for their salary for the next year. The number the player submits is based on three things:
- The players contribution to the team (basically, performance and playing time)
- Current Salary
- Salaries of other similar players at their position
Using comparable salaries is what typically drives up the prices. Since arbitration happens in February, most free agents are signed by then. So when a similar player locks up a huge contract, it benefits everyone else at that position by setting a higher precedent for the position.
Sometimes the players lose their case and get no extra money, but typically, they will get at least somewhat of a raise. This is often millions of dollars, but in the case of these 3 Sox players, will be more like a couple hundred thousand. Both the team and the players will be submitting offers for next year’s salary in the time leading up to the arbitration hearing. Once the hearing happens, both sides submit their final offers and the arbiters decide who wins. The decision is binding. It can be compared to going to court. Negotiation happens up to that point, but in the end, its whatever the judge says goes.
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