Cubs Avoid Arbitration With 5 Players: Strop, Wood, Warren, Grimm and Rondon

On the eve of the Cubs Convention, the team has settled 2016 contracts with five of the seven arbitration-eligible players:

#Cubs avoid arbitation with Grimm ($1.275 mill), Wood ($6.17 mill) and Strop ($4.4 mill)

— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) January 15, 2016

Also, Warren ($1.7 million) and Rondon ($4.2 million) avoid arb and are done. #Cubs

— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) January 15, 2016

Let's have a look at the raises that each of these players received from 2015.

Travis Wood made $5,686,000 in 2015, so his $6,170,000 salary for 2016 is an increase of $484,000, or 8.5 percent.

Pedro Strop made $2,525,000 in 2015, so his $4,400,000 salary for 2016 is an increase of $1,875,000, or 74.25 percent.

Hector Rondon made $544,000 in 2015, so his $4,200,000 salary for 2016 is an increase of $3,656,000, or 672 percent.

Adam Warren made $572,600 in 2015, so his $1,700,000 salary for 2016 is an increase of $1,127,400, or 197 percent.

Justin Grimm made $531,500 in 2015, so his $1,275,000 salary for 2016 is an increase of $743,500, or 140 percent.

That leaves two arb-eligible Cubs unsigned: Jake Arrieta and Chris Coghlan. It sounded from reports this week as if Arrieta and the Cubs were close to agreement, but there's been no public word on Coghlan.

I would assume that Arrieta will sign soon. The Cubs nearly went to arbitration with Strop last year, but he signed just before his hearing. Arb hearings will take place from February 1 through 21.