San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt was the subject of various rumors throughout the offseason. Many speculated he might be traded or that he'd sign a long-term extension with the Giants as he entered his second year of arbitration eligibility.
Well, he didn't sign a long-term contract, but Belt and the Giants avoided arbitration today and agreed to a one-year, $6.2 million deal, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. Jon Heyman also confirmed the report.
Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News reported on Tuesday night that the Giants and Belt would have an arbitration hearing on Wednesday if they failed to agree to a contract for the 2016 season.
Now that they've reportedly come to an agreement, this marks the 12th consecutive year that the Giants have not reached an arbitration hearing with one of their players.
Belt, 27, filed for a $7.5 million salary in 2016 and San Francisco countered with $5.3 million. MLBTradeRumors.com projected Belt to earn $6.2 million, which is the exact the reported agreement. The two sides settled just below the $6.4 million midpoint.
The slugger had a very productive campaign in 2015 after being limited to 61 games in 2014 due to injuries. Belt hit .280/.356/.478 with 73 runs scored, 18 home runs (career-high) and 68 RBI (career-high) in 137 games.
It's still possible the two sides work out an extension, as Belt figures to be an important player for the Giants moving forward. San Francisco has already taken care of Brandon Crawford this offseason, signing him to a six-year extension, and he was entering just his first year of arbitration eligibility.
Giants general manager Bobby Evans said earlier in the offseason that the team may first work out a one-year deal with Belt and then discuss a long-term pact, according to Alex Pavlovic of CSNBayArea.com, likely due to their aggressiveness in free agency.
San Francisco spent a ton of money this offseason in adding starters Jeff Samardzija ($90 million) and Johnny Cueto ($130 million) as well as outfielder Denard Span ($31 million). As a result, their payrolls over the next four seasons are high and the team will likely need to do some tinkering to work in another long-term contract for Belt.
Stay tuned for an official announcement from the Giants.
