LAS VEGAS -- The Brewers scratched an item off their winter to-do list Wednesday by signing right-hander Jimmy Nelson to a $3.7 million contract, avoiding arbitration with a pitcher who missed all of last season while rehabbing from right shoulder surgery.
Nelson's salary is the same as last year, which is standard for an arbitration-eligible player coming back from a missed season. But beyond the standard incentive package, a source confirmed that the Brewers agreed to include a $50,000 bonus should Nelson win the National League Comeback Player of the Year Award.
Two weeks ago, Nelson told MLB Network that he was in the midst of a standard offseason and eager to report to Maryvale Baseball Park -- the Spring Training home of the Brewers -- as a full participant. Last year at this time, he was still in the very early stages of recovering from his September 2017 shoulder surgery.
"So far, so good. Just knocking off some rust," Nelson said. "I'm excited to get back to throwing and kind of go into Spring Training with some sense of normalcy."
Nelson willl be part of a deep group of starting pitchers in camp, with Jhoulys Chacin, Chase Anderson, Zach Davies, Brandon Woodruff, Corbin Burnes, Freddy Peralta, Junior Guerra, Adrian Houser and more vying for innings.
"I think Step 1 is to see how Jimmy goes through his pre-Spring Training throwing program," Brewers GM David Stearns said. "He'll begin to ramp that up here as we get close to the New Year, and then we'll design a Spring Training program based in part on how he feels as he goes through his throwing in January."
Nelson would provide a huge boost if he can return to his form in 2017, when he logged 199 strikeouts before injuring his shoulder in an early-September game at Wrigley Field. But it will be some time before club officials know with any certainty how he will perform.
"Certainly not right now, and even as we go into Spring Training," Stearns said, "I'm not sure we're going to go in with any preconceived ideas of where Jimmy Nelson is going to begin the season, how he's going to begin the season, in what role, whether it's active or DL. We're going to let Jimmy go through his process and see how he feels.
"Look, we're going to have more information on Jimmy Nelson on Feb. 14 than we do right now, and we're going to have more information on March 14 than we do on Feb. 14. We're going to be patient here and learn as he goes through this process."
With Nelson's salary set, six Brewers players remain eligible for arbitration: catcher Manny Pina, outfielder Domingo Santana, infielder Travis Shaw and right-handers Guerra, Davies and Corey Knebel.