Major League Baseball

Increase in arbitration hearings doesn't equal labor problems

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 12:12 p.m. ET

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Major League Baseball has had a high number of salary arbitration hearings this offseason — at least by recent standards.

Eight cases have gone to hearings, with seven others outstanding. That’s the highest total in at least the last five cycles, according to the salary arbitration database at MLBTradeRumors.com: 

2015 — 8 hearings (and counting)
2014 — 3 hearings
2013 — 0 hearings
2012 — 7 hearings
2011 — 3 hearings

Should we view this year’s uptick as evidence of escalating labor discord between MLB and the MLB Players Association?

No.

So-called “file and trial” teams — which, as a matter of club policy, cease negotiating one-year contracts after figures are exchanged — accounted for six of the eight hearings to date. (The Blue Jays, Pirates and Marlins each had two.) In that sense, the one-year spike could be attributed to heavy arbitration case loads for those “file and trial” teams.

Yet, the situation bears monitoring. One year from now, the sport will enter the final season of its current collective bargaining agreement. MLB and MLBPA officials are likely to start negotiating a new CBA around spring training of 2016, as well. If there’s a similar number of hearings in the 2015-16 cycle, we might start to wonder about larger trends in baseball labor relations.

For now, file this away. 

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