Red Sox reach one-year deals with nine arbitration eligible players

The Boston Red Sox have reportedly reached agreements on 2018 salaries with nine of their ten eligible players to avoid arbitration.

The 2018 payroll for the Boston Red Sox is starting to come into focus with the reports of arbitration-eligible players reaching an agreement on one-year deals to avoid a hearing.

Today marked the deadline for teams to exchange arbitration salary figures with eligible players. Tyler Thornburg, Carson Smith, and Steven Wright already signed their 2018 deals prior to the deadline day, leaving 10 players left on the roster for the Red Sox to negotiate with.

The Red Sox were able to reach an agreement with nine of those players. Only Mookie Betts remains unsigned among these eligible players, which means the team may need to plead their case against his salary demands in front of a panel of arbitrators. It’s unclear at this time how far apart the two sides were in negotations. There’s also the chance that Boston can work out a long-term deal that buys out his remaining arbitration years and perhaps some free agency years.

This is the first year of arbitration eligibility for Betts, who earned a $950K salary in 2017 that is well above the near-minimum salary most pre-arbitration eligibles receive. To put that in perspective, Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant earned $1.05 million last year, a record for pre-arbitration eligibles.

The first domino to fall today was center fielder Jackie Bradley, who agreed to a $6.1 million contract. This is slightly above the $5.9 million projected by MLB Trade Rumors but is still a fair price for a player with Bradley’s defensive prowess. If his bat returns to 2016 form then he’ll be a bargain for a second-year arbitration player. Bradley earned $3.6 million last season.

Shortstop Xander Bogaerts received a $7.05 million deal in his second year of arbitration, up from $4.5 million last year. He was projected for $7.6 million. Bogearts struggled in the second half after being hit by a pitch on the hand in July but should bounce back to pre-injury form in 2018.

Reliever Joe Kelly earned a raise from $2.8 million last year to $3.825 in his third and final year of eligibility. He’ll be a free agent after this season. He was projected to make $3.6 million.

Utility-man Brock Holt earned a bump from $1.95 million to $2.225, despite that his 2017 season was essentially wiped out by concussion-like symptoms and vertigo. He was projected for $2 million in his second year of arbitration.

Left-handed pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez agreed to a $2.375 million deal in his first year of arbitration eligibility. E-Rod is what is known as a “Super 2” player, meaning the Red Sox were only able to get away with paying him near the league minimum for two seasons before he became arbitration eligible. He was projected for $2.7 million. While it may seem that Boston is getting a slight discount based on this projection, keep in mind that Rodriguez may miss the first couple of months this season while recovering from knee surgery.

Catcher Sandy Leon receives a $1.95 million deal in his first year of arbitration. He was projected for $2.1 million. He’ll resume the duties of the backup catcher role, even with Blake Swihart presumably locked into a roster spot. Leon’s rapport with Chris Sale makes him worth keeping around at this modest salary.

The team’s primary catcher, Christian Vazquez, agreed to a $1.45 million deal on the heels of a breakout season. While it may seem strange that the starter is making less than his backup, keep in mind that this is the first year of eligibility for Vazquez. Service time is a significant factor in determining arbitration salaries, in some cases more so than production.

Reliever Brandon Workman agreed to a deal for $835,000, up from $635,000 last season. He was projected for $900,000.

The biggest raise of the day goes to left-handed pitcher Drew Pomeranz, who earned an $8.5 million deal after making $4.45 million last year. He was projected for $9.1 million in his final year of arbitration.

The lefty shook off a disappointing second-half following the mid-season trade that brought him to Boston in 2016 to post a stellar season for the Red Sox. Pomeranz won 17 games and ranked 7th in the league with a 3.32 ERA. He’ll be a free agent after this season, giving him plenty of incentive to replicate these results.

The Red Sox have a history of avoiding arbitration with their players so it’s no surprise that they got deals done for most of their players. Hopefully, the lack of an agreement with Betts signals a long-term deal could be on the horizon. Otherwise, this should make for an interesting case in a potential arbitration hearing.

Chicago gave Bryant a $10.85 million deal for this year that stands as a new record for a first-year arbitration-eligible player. Will Betts top that?

The total combined salary of the nine players Boston agreed to deals with is $34.31 million. Add that the 11 players who were already under contract and the Red Sox payroll jumps to $171.81. This figure doesn’t factor in the pre-arbitration eligible players on the roster. They also still owe Pablo Sandoval about $18 million to stay away.

When Betts eventually is signed, his new salary will almost certainly put the Red Sox beyond the luxury tax threshold of $197 million. That’s before making an expected splash in free agency on a pricey slugger to anchor the lineup.

Next: Past free agency mistake should make Dombrowski cautious

We are getting closer to a clear picture of what the Red Sox 2018 payroll will look like and that picture is looking to be mighty expensive.