Suarez loses in arbitration, Sanchez has hearing
PHOENIX (AP) The Cincinnati Reds won their salary arbitration case against infielder Eugenio Suarez, and Chicago White Sox infielder Yolmer Sanchez became the latest player to go to a hearing.
Suarez was given a raise from $595,000 to $3.75 million on Tuesday rather than his request for $4.2 million, leaving players with a 5-3 lead. Fourteen players remain scheduled for hearings through Feb. 16 in what could be the busiest year in arbitration since 1990.
Sanchez asked for a raise from $546,000 to $2.35 million, and Chicago argued he should be paid $2.1 million.
Baltimore second baseman Jonathan Schoop avoided a hearing scheduled for Thursday, agreeing to an $8.5 million, one-year contract. His deal was $250,000 above the midpoint between the $9 million he asked for and the $7.5 million offered by the Orioles.
Suarez has been Cincinnati's starting third baseman the past two years after switching from shortstop. He .260 last season and set career highs with 26 homers and 82 RBIs on a team that finished last in the NL Central at 68-94. Arbitrators Mark Burstein, Jeanne Wood and James Darby decided in favor of the Reds, a day after hearing arguments.
Sanchez set career bests last year with a .267 average, 12 homers and 59 RBIs and .319 on-base percentage. He appeared in 78 games at second, 52 at third, four and shortstop and one in right field. A decision by arbitrators Robert Herzog, Sylvia Skratek and Walt De Treux is expected Wednesday.
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