Seven eligible Pirates officially filed for salary arbitration by today’s deadline, according to the Major League Baseball Players Association.
Francisco Cervelli, Jared Hughes, Jeff Locke, Mark Melancon, Jordy Mercer, Chris Stewart and Tony Watson all filed for arbitration. They will exchange desired salary figures with the Pirates on Friday, and some or all could agree to terms then, avoiding a hearing.
If they cannot agree on a contract, the player and team will make their case to a panel of arbitrators, who will award the players one salary or the other. Arbitration salaries are determined by comparisons to players with similar performance and service time.