Hector Rondon, Justin Grimm Sign, Avoid Arbitration

Friday was the deadline for major-league teams and arbitration-eligible players to sign contracts without having an arb hearing scheduled. As such, quite a number of players signed Friday to avoid going to a hearing.

The Cubs had four arb-eligible players this year: Jake Arrieta, Justin Grimm, Hector Rondon and Pedro Strop.

Now they are down to two:

Those numbers are very, very close to those estimated by MLB Trade Rumors; I posted those estimates earlier this week. Rondon was estimated at $5.7 million and Grimm at $1.8 million.

That leaves Strop, who MLBTR has at $5.5 million, and Arrieta, who MLBTR says should get $16.8 million.

The deadline for filing was 12 noon CT, so it’s passed. That doesn’t necessarily mean Strop and Arrieta haven’t agreed to terms, it just means nothing’s been publicly posted. The Cubs haven’t yet sent out any press release regarding any of these players, though I would expect one by the end of the day at least for Grimm and Rondon.

If Strop and Arrieta haven’t signed Friday, they will have arb hearings scheduled, sometime between January 30 and February 17. It doesn’t mean they will actually go to an arbitrator. Many players who schedule hearings sign before the actual hearing date, including Strop in 2015 and Arrieta last year.

As always, we await developments.