Chicago Sports Online
The Chicago Black Sox, following the precedent of the Boise Spuds, have released a rundown of how the team fared in the league’s recent round of arbitration hearings.
Team officials said they prevailed in 7 of the 8 cases that went to arbitration panel. One hearing was abruptly canceled when the player (1B Wendel Clark) withdrew his request and settled for the team's offer. Panelists sided with the player only in the case of Catcher Sergio Hernandez, who spent the season at AAA Carolina.
The Black Sox front office estimates the team saved more than $2 million through its successful arbitration cases.
Here are the specifics. (Winner denoted by asterisk; "difference" represents the difference between the player request and the team offer):
Black Sox Arbitration Results
For the upcoming 2040 season
| Player | 2039 Salary | Player Request | Team Offer | Winner | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sergio Hernandez, C | $1,215,000 | $1,704,500 | $1,250,000 | Player | +454,500 |
| Victor Bedolla, 3B | $500,000 | $1,250,000 | $700,000 | Team | -$550,000 |
| Wendel Clark, 1B | $500,000 | Withdrawn | $1,300,000 | Team | 0 |
| Juan Alfonso, RP | $750,000 | $1,250,000 | $850,000 | Team | -$400,000 |
| Alejandro Soto, SP | $750,000 | $1,112,500 | $850,000 | Team | -$262,500 |
| Fernando Reyes, LF | $500,000 | $1,195,000 | $750,000 | Team | -$445,000 |
| Fernando Navarro, INF | $800,000 | $1,192,500 | $900,000 | Team | -292,500 |
| Frits Brinson, RP | $500,000 | $1,250,00 | $750,000 | Team | -$500,000 |
| Tim Torres, CF | $5,000,000 | $6,875,000 | $6,325,000 | Team | -$550,000 |
"Hey, we did OK, right?" said team owner Vinnie Vitale after the results were announced. "We saved about what I spend on a nice weekend in Vegas - and that don't count the gambling, capeesh?"
