Despite a horrific showing across 82 games in 2018 for the Yankees, Greg Bird will receive a handsome raise from the $582,000 he took home last year.
On Thursday, the 26-year-old first baseman signed a one-year, $1.2 million contract. Bird still has two years remaining of arbitration eligibility.
Although MLB Trade Rumors projected Bird to make $1.5M for the upcoming season — and therefore fell $300k shy of that estimate, I’m still a little confounded as to how Bird managed to garner a $682,000 raise following his most recent dreadful campaign.
No, beginning last season on the disabled list following surgery to remove a bone spur from his right ankle didn’t do Bird any favors; however, he did return on May 26 and received the most plate appearances (and games played) of his brief three-year big league career.