Orioles offer key players as arbitration is on the horizon.
Arbitration has been used in Major League Baseball since the 1970s. It’s used to determine players’ salaries that are eligible if there’s a contract dispute. In arbitration, a team will offer a player a select amount of money, and the player can accept or elect arbitration. An arbitrator will then find a common number that the player will receive. Simple enough, right?
Today, the Baltimore Orioles agreed to terms with: LHP Keegan Akin, OF Sam Hilliard, INF/OF Jorge Mateo, and OF Ryan McKenna. This contract is a yearlong and covers the 2024 season.
The O’s offered contracts to: LHP Danny Coulombe, OF Austin Hays, LHP Cole Irvin, LHP John Means, INF Ryan Mountcastle, OF Cedric Mullins, INF/OF Ryan O’Hearn, LHP Cionel Perez, OF Anthony Santander, RHP Dillon Tate, INF Ramon Urias, RHP Jacob Webb, and RHP Tyler Wells.
The players that Baltimore has offered can do two things. They can reject the offer, and the team can cut them or go to arbitration, or they can accept and avoid arbitration. Free agency takes most of the headlines, but this is an important thing to monitor as the offseason goes on.
