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Today is the deadline for MLB teams to tender contracts to arbitration eligible players. We already saw our own Milwaukee Brewers avoid arbitration with one of their players earlier today when it was announced that Stephen Vogt was re-signed to a one-year deal, despite being considered as a non-tender candidate. Another player mentioned as a possible non-tender was reliever Jeremy Jeffress, but the Brewers have agreed to bring him back for next season as well:
Jeremy Jeffress has agree on a deal with the #Brewers to avoid salary arbitration, source confirms.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) December 1, 2017
Jeffress deal with #Brewers is for one year with two club options, source tells The Athletic. On it: @jcrasnick and @Haudricourt.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 2, 2017
Source: Jeremy Jeffress’ deal with Milwaukee is for $1.75 million. It includes two club options, the first for $3.175 million and second for $4.3 million. They can be exercised year by year and not both at the same time.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 2, 2017
Jeremy Jeffress gets $1.75 million (non-guaranteed) on his new deal with the Brewers. $1.7M for '18 and a $50,000 signing bonus. Club option for $3.175M in '19, another club option for $4.3M in '20. Plus up to $2.2M in incentives for IP and GF in each year of the deal.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) December 2, 2017
The #Brewers have signed RHP Jeremy Jeffress to a 1-year contract with club options for 2019 and 2020, avoiding arbitration. pic.twitter.com/D5nClTImvT
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) December 2, 2017
Jeffress, 30, was originally a first-round pick by the Brewers back in 2006 and despite pitching for four different franchises as a professional, has really only experienced success with Milwaukee. He was reacquired from Texas at last summer’s trade deadline, when the club sent minor leaguer Tayler Scott to the Rangers. Jeffress began the season by posting a 5.31 ERA across 40.2 innings with Texas, but managed to improve that to a 3.65 mark while tossing 24.2 innings for Milwaukee down the stretch.
Jeffress’ solid post-trade ERA wasn’t supported by his peripherals, however. His velocity was down a mile-and-a-half per hour from 2016 (though he still registered a sizzling 95.2 MPH) and he could manage only a 22:15 K/BB ratio during his second-half run with the Milwaukee Nine. His WHIP came in at an unsightly 1.58, while his 7.60 DRA during his 22 Brewers appearances was some 61% worse than league average.
Here's a good reason for Jeremy Jeffress to want to stay with #Brewers: In 180 career appearances with them, he has 2.56 ERA. In 91 games with KC, Texas and Toronto, he has 4.76 ERA. Pretty big difference.
— Tom (@Haudricourt) December 1, 2017
Jeffress had been predicted to earn $2.6 mil in arbitration through MLB Trade Rumors, though like Vogt, he agreed to settle for a contract well below that figure in order to remain in Milwaukee and avoid a non-tender. His salary for 2018 will be $1.75 mil with club options for $3.175 mil in 2019 and $4.3 mil in 2019, potentially buying out Jeffress’ remaining two years of arbitration control and one year of free agency.
This deal will allow the Brewers some cost certainty going forward, giving them the option to employ Jeffress at what relatively low costs in each of the next three seasons, but mitigates the risk of further regression from Jeffress by not even guaranteeing him employment for the 2018 season. He’ll compete for a spot in the bullpen next spring but the Brewers will be able to release him prior to the regular season if they so choose and will only be on the hook for termination pay (either 30 or 45 days worth, depending on when he’s hypothetically let go).
Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs and Baseball Prospectus.