Three Dodgers File for Salary Arbitration

With only about a month until pitchers and catchers report for Spring training we trudge into the depths of January. That means that salary arbitration hearings are approaching. On Friday 142 MLB players filed for arbitration. The filing window is normally three days in length which started on Friday and ends today. The Dodgers have three players that filed for arbitration: Clayton Kershaw, Andre Ethier, and James Loney. So as we lounge on this lazy Sunday afternoon, let’s take a look at the Dodgers who are filing for arbitration and their projected salaries for next year.

Clayton Kershaw-2011 salary-500,000

Projected 2012 salary-10.7 million

Clayton Kershaw who made only 500,000 dollars last season is in line for a huge raise after winning the National League Cy Young Award. Kershaw proved his complete and utter domination over all opponents last season by going 21-5 with a 2.28 ERA and whiffing 248 batters. This gave Kershaw the pitching triple crown. He finished tied for first in wins, first in ERA, and first in the league in strikeouts. Kershaw was also 13-1 at home, 5-0 against the Giants, including 4-0 against rival and fellow Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum. He also won a gold glove and received his first all-star selection. Kershaw is projected to get a raise in the neighborhood of 8 million dollars. Kersh deserves every penny.

 Andre Ethier-2011 salary-9.5 million

Projected 2012 salary-10.7 million

Andre Ethier had a bum knee that zapped his power, and  it caused him to continue to struggle against lefties. Despite the drop in power, Ethier still had a good season.  He got off to a great start batting .380 in April, having a record 30 game hitting streak, and winning a gold glove. Ethier batted .292 with 11 home runs and 62 RBI. Projections see him getting about 10.7 million in arbitration.

 James Loney-2011 salary-4.8 million

Projected 2012 salary-10.7 million

Our last player filing for arbitration is first baseman James Loney. Lone-dog had an absolutely horrid start to the season, then had a phoenix from the ashes resurrection during the last two months of the season. After we had all but given up on him, he had a torrid final two months of the season to finish respectably. Loney batted .288 with 12 home runs and 65 RBI. Last year Loney made nearly 5 million dollars, and according to the projections is set to get a sizeable raise of around 6.5 million dollars. Whether Loney will prove he is worthy of this remains to be seen.

Remember the player and their respective teams will exchange salary figures on January 17^th. The actual hearings will be held from February 1-21 in St. Petersburg Florida. The Padres had the most players who filed with 11, and the only team with none was the White Sox. The Dodgers actually had three other players who were eligible at the beginning of the winter, but Kemp and Gwynn signed extensions, and Hong-Chih Kuo was non-tendered.  I used the MLB trade rumors salary arbitration projections. You can see the complete list here 2012 Salary Arbitration Projections

They also have an arbitration tracker you can check out here MLB Trade Rumors Arbitration Tracker