Arbitration season is now officially upon us, with today's 1:00 p.m. ET arbitration agreement deadline having come and gone.
The Philadelphia Phillies came into deadline day, which was bumped up one day from the original Jan. 12 date, with five arbitration-eligible players still without agreements for the 2024 season: third baseman Alec Bohm, starting pitcher Ranger Suárez, relievers Gregory Soto and Jeff Hoffman, and utilityman Edmundo Sosa.
The Phillies came to terms with Suárez, Hoffman, and Sosa and will now avoid arbitration hearings with the pair of pitchers and utility player.
Ranger Suárez, who earned $2.9 million in 2023, received a nice raise for 2024. The Phillies and Suárez agreed to a $5.05 million salary, per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Scott Lauber. MLB Trade Rumors' projection for his arbitration was $4.7 million.
Suárez went 4-6 over 22 regular season starts and finished with a 4.18 ERA in 125 1/3 innings, but it was the postseason where the southpaw sparkled. As the third starter, he pitched to a 1-1 record with a 1.93 ERA and 0.80 WHIP over four starts.
The #Phillies agreed to a $5.05 million salary for 2024 with Ranger Suárez to avoid arbitration. @MattGelb also on it.
— Scott Lauber (@ScottLauber) January 11, 2024
Hoffman got himself a raise in his final arbitration year after an incredible 2023 season for the Phillies. Per Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the team and Hoffman agreed to a $2.2 million deal for 2024, just a little more than the $2.1 million MLB Trade Rumors projected. The 31-year-old earned $1.3 million last season, a year in which he finished with a 2.41 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in 52 1/3 innings out of the bullpen.
The next question for Hoffman is whether the Phillies will offer an extension to the right-hander, or if they'll wait for him to prove himself for a second season and head into free agency next offseason.
Phillies and Jeff Hoffman agreed to a $2.2 million salary for 2024 to avoid arbitration. It's Hoffman's final year of club control; he'll be a free agent next offseason.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) January 11, 2024
Sosa agreed to a $1.7 million deal for 2024 with the team, per Lauber. That's the exact amount MLB Trade Rumors predicted for the 27-year-old, who made $950,000 in 2023. Sosa got into 104 games last season and in 300 plate appearances posted a .251/.293/.427 slash line with 30 RBI and 10 home runs.
Bohm and Soto yet to announce agreements
For Bohm and Soto, the two players who have yet to have an agreement announced, the deadline for both sides to file salary numbers is set for 8:00 p.m. ET Thursday night, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Alec Bohm, heading into his fifth big league season, is due for the largest raise of the bunch. MLB Trade Rumors predicts that the 27-year-old will earn $4.3 million in 2024. He made $748,000 in 2023. Bohm hit .274 last season, with a .765 OPS and a career-high in home runs (20) and RBI (97).
Gregory Soto could see his salary bump up from $3.9 million in 2023 to $4.9 million in 2024, the lefty reliever's second season in Philadelphia. The 28-year-old appeared in 69 games for the Phillies last season, and while his 4.62 ERA doesn't look great, his 2.84 xERA, 3.59 FIP and 3.83 xFIP were all considerably better.
The team already avoided arbitration with three players back in November, when they agreed to terms with catcher Garrett Stubbs, reliever Dylan Covey, and outfielder Jake Cave.