Ethier's arbitration hearing set for Feb. 17
That should give the sides plenty of time to reach an agreement and avoid a hearing, but you never know. And from what I can gather so far, it doesn't sound like the two sides are anywhere close to an agreement at this point. In case you missed it, Ethier is seeking $3.75 million, while the team filed at $2.65 million. He is the Dodgers' only pending arbitration case.
Given what Ethier has done for this team in the past couple of years, Ethier deserves far more than what these arbitration numbers indicate. I think he'll be much better this year too.
Buddy, such is the life of young players before they hit free agency. In the arbitration world, comparing players to those with similar service time is key. Given that, Ethier's salary will end up in line with his comparables.
It might not be "fair," but that's the system. The players know they have to hit free agency to make the relative big bucks.
Eric, those comparables you mentioned often deal with players of similar positions. But in this case, I think one comparison you have to look at is Ethier vs. Russell Martin -- excuse me, Russell J. Martin -- because they made their ML debuts exactly five days apart in 2006, both have been in the big leagues ever since, and both are arbitration-eligible this year as ``super twos.'' In that time, Ethier has a higher average, more doubles and more home runs, but Russell has more RBI and is a two-time All-Star (Ethier is a zero-time All-Star). Martin avoided arbitration and settled for $3.9 million, and Ethier filed at $150k BELOW that. If this goes to a hearing, it could definitely go either way.
My prediction: They will settle at $3.25 million for 2009 and it ultimately will be harder to lock Ethier down with a multi-year deal (if the Dodgers eventally decide to go that route) than it will be for Martin or Broxton.
Hey Tony:
I disagree with your logic here. First of all, the All-Star thing is kind of a bogus item. The fact is, RJM really slipped both offensively and defensively last year. Getting voted in by fans is meaningless. Getting picked last year may have more to do with 2007, plus the lack of quality catchers in the NL.
Also, imagine where Ethier might be statwise, if he didn't get coc.K blocked by Geezer Gonzo in '07, and J.oU.rneymA.N. Pierre in '08. He got pushed around the lineup, like a gutter bum. Hitting in front of Manny definitely helped Andre, but the reality is, he took full advantage of the opportunity. He deserves props, and 3.25M for the season.