Phils' arb history encouraging for Bohm
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The Phillies reached one-year deals with seven of their eight arbitration-eligible players this offseason, but they did not come to terms with third baseman Alec Bohm.
Instead, Bohm exchanged salary figures with the team at Thursday’s deadline. Before diving a bit deeper on what that means for Bohm and the Phillies, let’s clear the deck on the rest of Philadelphia’s arbitration-eligible players.
The club agreed with starting pitcher Ranger Suárez, versatile infielder Edmundo Sosa and key bullpen pieces Gregory Soto and Jeff Hoffman. The Phils previously came to terms with their three other arbitration-eligible players -- outfielder Jake Cave, right-hander Dylan Covey and catcher Garrett Stubbs -- earlier this offseason to avoid arbitration.
As for Bohm, let’s take a closer look at what comes next for the 27-year-old third baseman:
What is Bohm’s arbitration situation?
Bohm, who made $748,000 last season, is in his first of three potential years of arbitration. He filed for $4 million for the upcoming season, and the Phillies countered at $3.4 million.
Does this mean they will definitely go to a hearing?
No. In fact, the club exchanged figures with both José Alvarado and Seranthony Domínguez last offseason, but neither player went to a hearing. Instead, the Phillies not only reached new deals with Alvarado and Domínguez last February, but signed both players to multiyear extensions to avoid arbitration. That included essentially buying out the final two years of Domínguez’s salary-arbitration eligibility.
Something similar could be possible with Bohm. Another option would be simply reaching a one-year deal before a potential hearing during Spring Training. Or, of course, the two sides could go to a hearing, at which point a panel of arbitrators would decide on either the $3.4 million or $4 million figure -- nothing in between.
What does this mean long term?
Simply exchanging numbers doesn’t figure to have much lingering impact on the situation. As mentioned above, it’s still very possible the two sides could work out a deal before going to a hearing. Even if they don’t come to an agreement, however, there are plenty of examples of players going to arbitration hearings and still having long, successful careers with that team.
The most notable example in Philadelphia is Ryan Howard, who was awarded a then-record $10 million (the Phillies had countered at $7 million) in arbitration in 2008. Howard then filed for $18 million the following year before eventually signing a three-year, $54 million contract in February 2009 to avoid arbitration.
In other words, there are still plenty of ways Bohm’s contract situation could play out, but there will be more clarity -- about this year and possibly beyond -- in the next month or so.