The Brewster

In a total of 7 arbitration decisions for the Valencia organization, the final three decisions were handed out for Tim Bartlett, Vicente Rivera and Koray Kapkin.

Tim Bartlett – The third baseman saw his salary increase from $3.4M to $4.44M this next season. Tim had a decent 2059 season batting .240 but had an on-base percentage of .336 thanks to the 64 walks that he coaxed out of opposing pitching. Tim also hit 17 homers along with providing an above average glove/arm combination. His WAR of 2.2 last season still leaves the $4.44M price tag somewhat of a bargain assuming he can duplicate his production in 2060.

Vincente Rivera – In his first year beyond the league minimum paycheck, he received a decision of $1.43M for 2060. Vincente hit .296 with a .375 on-base percentage in only 247 at bats. With adding his 10 home runs, it was worth a WAR of 1.6 for the season making him still worth the money. Kenny Blackwell is still getting the lion’s share of starts at first base hitting .256/.323 with 14 homers, but Blackwell’s defense is quite a bit better.

Koray Kapkin – The back-up outfielder saw his salary increase from $909K to $1.52M this off-season. Koray hit .238/.318 in a reserve role over 244 at bats this past season with a WAR of 0.5. Koray was able to do a good job in all three outfield slots only committing 1 error in 161 chances. Koray also was able to fill in at shortstop for 10 games over the course of the season when needed.

Do you purposefully plan to go to arbitration or were the players not negotiating?

When I checked out the extensions the were higher for each of these players than the arbitration estimates. Do you see instances when they are not?

DugoutDesperado wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 05, 2024 12:01 am

When I checked out the extensions the were higher for each of these players than the arbitration estimates. Do you see instances when they are not?

What I usually do is find a happy medium between the proposal of the player and the internal guess. Because usually if the arbiter goes the players way, the cost is much higher than the arbitration estimate.

Trebro wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 06, 2024 12:25 pm

DugoutDesperado wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 05, 2024 12:01 am

When I checked out the extensions the were higher for each of these players than the arbitration estimates. Do you see instances when they are not?

What I usually do is find a happy medium between the proposal of the player and the internal guess. Because usually if the arbiter goes the players way, the cost is much higher than the arbitration estimate.

I guess I have been lucky so far. Just as many go in favor of Valencia as has gone to the players. I should try and go back and compare to see what the overall plus and minus would be.