Going into 2016 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates face a serious financial challenge with arbitration eligible players. Here now is our live 2016 Arbitration Tracker.
This tracker will list all seven arbitration eligible players for the Pittsburgh Pirates and is updated immediately once the details of any contract settlement and/or arbitration ruling are announced. We’ll also show you what MLB Trade Rumors predicted for each player’s salary after the arbitration process was complete (Please consider reading their entire 2016 arbitration projections).
[table id=39 /]UPDATES – 1/15/2016
The Pirates have announced via their official Twitter that Mark Melancon has avoided arbitration
#Pirates have agreed to terms & avoid arbitration with:
Francisco Cervelli
Jared Hughes
Jeff Locke
Jordy Mercer
Mark Melancon
Tony Watson— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) January 15, 2016
At the time of this writing the exact terms of any potential contract is not known. Melancon represented the biggest challenge for the team in arbitration with his projected $10 million salary. Melancon has been a subject of hot trade debate over the past several months, with Neal Huntington quoted as saying that he would “feel comfortable” if Melancon remained a Pirate for 2016.
UPDATE: Bill Brink of the PG has put Melancon’s salary at $9.65 million.
Melancon settled at $9.65 million, according to an industry source.
— Bill Brink (@Bill_Brink2) January 15, 2016
Tony Watson has avoided arbitration by agreeing to a 1-year/$3.45 Million deal
Tony Watson gets $3.45M from the Pirates. In the annals of Watsons, though, this one is my favorite. https://t.co/LlatK7oSun
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 15, 2016
Of all of the arbitration-related figures we have been tracking today, this is the most surprising. Watson has clearly established himself as a premiere reliever in the game today. With two straight seasons with an under-2.00 ERA and microscopic WHIP figures, the Pirates will get an excellent value with Watson’s contract.
Francisco Cervelli and Jared Hughes have both agreed to deals to avoid arbitration.
Source: #Pirates, Jared Hughes avoid arb. $2.175 million in 2016
— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) January 15, 2016
Frankie Cervelli gets $3.5M from the Pirates. Was thought to be an extension candidate after one of the best under-the-radar seasons in '15.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 15, 2016
The Cervelli agreement represents the first substantial “loss” for the Pirates through the arbitration process, inasmuch as they did not actually go before the arbitration panel. Even considering the Chris Stewart extension, the Pirates are likely to get very good relative value from the catcher position this year.
Hughes has proven a capable major league reliever, though his 2016 role may be clouded due to the significant resources put towards the bullpen by general manager Neal Huntington. With Neftali Feliz in tow, Hughes may be relegated to pitching mainly in the men-on-base scenarios that he has become known for.
Jordy Mercer has agreed to a 2016 salary of $2.075 million, per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
mercer, pirates agree at $2.075M
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 15, 2016
Mercer gets a slight bump from his projected 2016 salary figure. Mercer is looking to rebound from a 2015 plagued by injury and offensive ineffectiveness.
UPDATES – 1/14/2016
After non-tendering Pedro Alvarez and trading Neil Walker, the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to reduce their total number of players eligible for arbitration down to seven entering yesterday.
By the time the dust settled on the day, Chris Stewart and Jeff Locke had reached deals to avoid going to the arbitration table.
Ken Rosenthal reported the news on Locke:
Source: #Pirates settle with Jeff Locke on one-year, $3.025M contract, avoiding arbitration.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 14, 2016
Locke is penciled in as a member of the Pirates starting rotation to start the 2016 season. He will look to regain his 2013 All-Star form. In 30 starts last year, Locke struggled to a 4.49 ERA and gave up career highs in hits and earned runs.
Earlier in the day, multiple outlets reported that the Pirates had reached a deal on an extension with catcher Chris Stewart. Robert Murray of Baseball Essential had it first:
Source: #Pirates signing Chris Stewart to a two-year deal. Has a team option for a third year.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) January 14, 2016
We took a look at the extension, and on the surface this raises more questions than it answers. Stewart is a quality backup backstop who has a good rapport with the pitching staff. He is a singles hitter who, by his own admission, does not carry any power to speak of. He’s a valuable piece in the role he plays.
Yet many feel that the extension should have gone to Francisco Cervelli. Matt Gajtka of DkPittsburghSports.com quickly dashed those hopes:
Story: https://t.co/6c5C1UUO4T Source familiar w/negotiations tells me "zero" progress on Cervelli extension https://t.co/CftvAuxxJy
— Matt Gajtka (GITE-kah) (@MattGajtka) January 14, 2016
With Elias Diaz not far behind and Reese McGuire on track, the Pittsburgh Pirates are quickly coming to a fork in the road with one of the most important positions on the baseball diamond.
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