The Atlantic City Gamblers and six players went to arbitration to decide their 2035 salary - third baseman Bucky Dornster, catcher Joaquin Camacho, outfielder Ricardo Hernandez, second baseman Derrek Kennedy, right-handed starting pitcher / relief pitcher Jarod Wilson, and shortstop José Vela.
Third baseman Bucky Dornster - $10,000,000
Dornster, 26, was acquired by the Atlantic City Gamblers on 8/19/2032 in a trade that sent right-handed starting pitcher Adam Barnard to the Halifax Hawks (now Nashville Goats). Dornster finished the 2034 season hitting .275/.370/.454 with 96 runs scored (career high), 26 doubles, 6 triples (career high), 23 home runs (tied for career high), 78 RBIs, 1 stolen base in 1 attempt (1.000 success rate), and a 4.9 WAR (career high) in 696 at-bats. In 1,410 2/3 innings at third base, Dornster recorded 10 errors (.977 fielding percentage), 26 double plays, a 2.75 range factor, a +8.0 zone rating, and a 1.043 defensive efficiency, en route to winning his third consecutive BBA JL Yogi Zimmer Diamond Glove Award. Scouts rate Dornster as having 7/6/6/8/7 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K ratings; 7/6/7/8/7 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K potential ratings; 9/4/4 speed/stealing/baserunning ratings; 2/9/2 first base/third base/shortstop ratings; and 5/11/10/7 infield range/infield error/infield arm/turn double play ratings. Dornster is eligible for free agency next season and it is no secret that he is valued by the Gamblers’ front office. Dornster’s elite glove and flexibility in the lineup are considered to be valuable assets; he is a switch hitter with plate discipline, on-base ability, and speed that creates value in placing him higher in the batting order, but also has pop that can make him an option in the middle of the lineup.
Catcher Joaquin Camacho - $6,500,000
Camacho, 27, was drafted with the 18th pick in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2027 BBA Amateur Draft by the Atlantic City Gamblers organization. Camacho finished the 2034 season hitting .298/.332/.443 with 78 runs scored, 43 doubles, 1 triple, 11 home runs, 57 RBIs, 0 stolen bases in 1 attempt (0% success rate), and a 2.9 WAR in 540 at-bats. In 1,163 2/3 innings at catcher, Camacho recorded 16 errors (.986 fielding percentage), 10 double plays, an 8.99 range factor, a +1.3 zone rating, a 1.121 defensive efficiency, a .344 caught stealing percentage, and a 4.71 catcher’s ERA. Scouts rate Camacho as having 8/7/4/4/9 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K ratings / potential ratings; 1/1/4 speed/stealing/baserunning ratings; a 6 catcher rating; and 7/5 catcher ability/catcher arm ratings. Camacho posted the second lowest WAR of his career during the 2034 season, which ended a three-year streak of improving WAR. He posted a career-high in runs scored, but posted career-lows in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS.
Outfielder Ricardo Hernández - $4,230,000
Hernandez, 25, was acquired by the Atlantic City Gamblers organization along with left-handed starting pitcher Gonzalo Fajardo, infielder Marvin Slater, third baseman Ernesto Chavez, and left-handed starting pitcher Gow Cho in exchange for right-handed starting pitcher Mingo Boone, right-handed closer Hiroyuki Rin, and utility infielder Soshu Kono. Hernandez was signed to a minor league contract by the Las Vegas Hustlers organization on 1/9/2026. Hernandez finished the 2034 season hitting .261/.382/.474 with 104 runs scored, 23 doubles, 1 triple, 32 home runs, 83 RBIs, 70 stolen bases in 104 attempts (.673 success rate), and a 3.8 WAR in 567 at-bats. In 940 1/3 innings in center field, Hernandez recorded 1 error (.996 fielding percentage), 18 assists, 8 double plays, a 2.28 range factor, a -9.4 zone rating, and a .942 defensive efficiency; in 433 innings in left field, Hernandez recorded 1 error (.989 fielding percentage), 5 assists, 1 double play, a 1.91 range factor, a +3.1 zone rating, and a 1.056 defensive efficiency; and in 8 innings in right field, Hernandez recorded 0 errors (1.000 fielding percentage), a 2.25 range factor, a +0.7 zone rating, and a .000 defensive efficiency. Scouts rate Hernandez as having 5/6/8/8/6 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K ratings / potential ratings; 10/11/11 speed/stealing/baserunning ratings; 10/6/9 left field/center field/right field ratings; and 7/11/9 outfield range/outfield error/outfield arm ratings. Hernandez has been a consistent force in the Gamblers’ lineup, displaying strong on-base ability with 30+ home run power. He recorded the second 100+ run scoring season of his career. After playing the early part of the season in center field, he was shifted to left field later in the season to better accommodate his defensive abilities - he is a more natural corner outfielder. Hernandez is also arbitration-eligible for the 2036 and 2037 seasons.
Second baseman Derrek Kennedy - $1,900,000
Kennedy, 23, was acquired by the Atlantic City Gamblers organization in a trade that sent right-handed closer Alan Dominguez to the Louisville Sluggers. Kennedy finished the 2034 season hitting .275/.305/.449 with 71 runs scored, 27 doubles, 4 triples, 22 home runs, 72 RBIs, 2 stolen bases in 5 attempts (.400 success rate), and a 1.1 WAR in 581 at-bats. In 1,396 1/3 innings at second base, Kennedy recorded 9 errors (.988 fielding percentage), 97 double plays, a 4.93 range factor, a -5.0 zone rating, and a .976 defensive efficiency. Scouts rate Kennedy as having 7/7/7/4/7 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K ratings; 7/7/8/4/7 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K potential ratings; 3/8/5 speed/stealing/baserunning ratings; 7/7/4 second base/third base/shortstop ratings; 6/7/8/8 infield range/infield error/infield arm/turn double play ratings. A more natural third baseman when he was acquired from Louisville, the Gamblers immediately sought to convert him to second base; the results have been acceptable, and he has shown improvement from last season via improved fielding percentage (.977 VS .988), zone rating (-5.7 VS -5.0), and defensive efficiency (.972 VS .976). He posted career-bests in triples, home runs, RBIs, batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS. He declined from last season in walk percentage (.052 VS .035), which means plate discipline will be a point of emphasis for Kennedy in 2035.
Right-handed starting pitcher / relief pitcher Jarod Wilson - $900,000
Wilson, 26, was drafted with the 22nd pick in the 4th round (123rd overall) of the 2029 BBA Amateur Draft by the Atlantic City Gamblers organization. Wilson finished the 2034 season 4-8 with 1 save in 3 attempts (.333 save percentage), a 5.47 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP, a 4.81 FIP, a .295 OAVG, a .313 BABIP, a .421 QS%, a .154 IRS%, 2 holds, 97 strikeouts, and a -0.4 WAR in 148 innings pitched (36 appearances, 19 starts). Scouts rate Wilson as having 7/5/9 stuff/movement/control ratings; 7/8/3/8 fastball/curveball/slider/changeup ratings; a 6 stamina rating; an 8 hold runners rating; a neutral groundball/flyball tendency; an over the top arm slot; and velocity that peaks at 91-93 miles per hour. Wilson regressed during the 2034 season, posting a negative WAR after two consecutive seasons of increasing, positive WAR (0.8 in 2032, 1.5 in 2033). Wilson posted a successful season as a reliever in 2032 (6-5, 3 saves, 3.78 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 3.70 FIP); he began 2033 as a reliever and returned to the rotation around midseason, having a career year (11-6, 3.48 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3.78 FIP). Wilson was removed from the rotation and placed in the bullpen during the latter part of the 2034 season – although 2035 plans are far from solidified during the offseason, it’s likely that he’d have to strongly impress in spring if he were to get another shot in the rotation to start the season.
Shortstop José Vela - $800,000
Vela, 23, was drafted with the 11th pick in the 7th round of the 2028 BBA Amateur Draft by the Atlantic City Gamblers organization. Vela finished the 2034 season hitting .237/.268/.310 with 66 runs scored, 16 doubles, 4 triples, 5 home runs, 40 RBIs, 49 stolen bases in 76 attempts (.645 success rate), and a -0.4 WAR in 539 at-bats. In 1,370 innings at shortstop, Vela recorded 16 errors (.976 fielding percentage), 82 double plays, a 4.34 range factor, a +8.8 zone rating, and a 1.040 defensive efficiency. Scouts rate Vela as having 6/7/4/3/8 contact/gap/power/eye/avoid K ratings / potential ratings; 10/11/11 speed/stealing/baserunning ratings; 4/11 second base/shortstop ratings; and 10/11/7/10 infield range/infield error/infield arm/turn double play ratings. Vela posted a negative WAR for the first time in his career, declining from his totals of 2.4 in his rookie year of 2032 and 0.1 in 2033. Despite the two consecutive years of declining WAR and entering negative WAR territory, Vela will likely remain the Gamblers’ starting shortstop entering the 2035 season. The team hopes he can recapture his 2032 performance in his rookie year, where he slashed .273/.306/.428, all career-highs, with career-highs of 11 home runs and 54 RBIs. Vela is a free swinger who will likely never be a good on-base guy, but the team hopes he can make more contact as his speed alone is capable of buying some infield hits. Vela has posted relatively good metrics at shortstop, though the team wants him to slash the number of errors committed after recording a career-high 16 in 2034.
