According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the Phillies agreed one-year contracts with Ranger Suarez ($5.05M) and Jeff Hoffman ($2.97M) to avoid arbitration one day before organizations and players eligible for salary arbitration were supposed to exchange statistics.
They were two of five Phillies eligible for arbitration, along with Gregory Soto, Alec Bohm, and Edmundo Sosa.
Suarez was in his second of three arbitration years. Last season, he made $2.95 million.
It was Hoffman’s final arbitration year, and he established himself as a late-inning relief weapon with improved command and a slider that hitters struggled to square up in 2023, his ninth big-league season. Hoffman had a 2.41 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in 54 appearances for the Twins in a career year that began with his discharge from spring training.
Suarez’s last season with the team will be in 2025. He’s a great triumph for the Phillies’ international scouting department, a $25,000 signing in 2012 who has not only made it to the big leagues but also been an important component of playoff rotations. Suarez has had a 3.19 ERA in 38613 innings over the last three seasons. In 3313 playoff innings, he has a dazzling 1.62 ERA and 0.90 WHIP and has pitched well in all six series. His presence and production have been critical on such a high-priced club.
Teams sometimes find common ground with their players in the week preceding the exchange of figures in order to avoid going to arbitration, and the Phillies might very well reach agreements with their last three players by the end of the week. Last January 13, the Phillies signed Suarez, Soto, Sosa, and Rhys Hoskins, then extended Jose Alvarado and Seranthony Dominguez a month later to avoid arbitration hearings.
Soto is expected to receive $4.9 million, Bohm $4.3 million, and Sosa $1.7 million, according to MLBTradeRumors’ Matt Swartz.
The Phillies avoided arbitration earlier this offseason by signing three others to one-year contracts: Jake Cave ($1M), Garrett Stubbs ($850K), and Dylan Covey ($850K).
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