Milwaukee Brewers’ Ace Corbin Burnes Will Be Motivated By Losing Salary Arbitration Hearing

Milwaukee Brewers ace Corbin Burnes has a chip on his shoulder.

Actually, it may be more like a rock, or even a boulder.

Burnes, 28, who was in his second year of MLB salary arbitration eligibility, asked the Brewers for a 2023 salary of $10.75M. The Brewers offered him $10.01M.

When Burnes and the Brewers couldn’t agree on a salary, the Brewers took Burnes to an MLB conducted salary arbitration hearing. The MLB appointed arbiter ruled in favor of the Brewers.

Talk about motivation for a season? That should do it for Mr. Burnes.

Based on the projections by Fangraphs, the Brewers have an estimated 2023 payroll of $120M, down from last season’s estimated $137M payroll.

One has to wonder if the difference of $740,000 the Brewers will save is worth the hard feelings Burnes has after the decision?

Burnes was quoted as saying the following to MLB.com: “There’s no denying that the relationship is definitely hurt. There’s no way of getting around it.”

Burnes also implied that the Brewers put him in “the forefront of why we didn’t make the postseason last year.”

Burnes has one more year of salary arbitration before he can become a free agent following the 2025 season.

One also has to wonder if the Brewers will offer Burnes a long-term extension? Or, if they do offer that secure contract, will Burnes accept the offer, or head to free agency? Heading to free agency is a distinct possibility.

Have the Brewers burned a bridge with Corbin Burnes? That’s also a possibility.

Have the Brewers impacted the attitudes and feelings of the rest of their roster by saving $740,000? To this writer, that’s an issue that should concern Brewers ownership and their front office. And of course, their fans.

In November 1973, led by the persistence and vision of their executive director, Marvin Miller, the Major League Baseball Players Association won the right of salary arbitration.

Arbitration is seen as one of the most important and crucial player victories in the history of labor disputes with MLB ownership.

Players hold arbitration as a bitterly negotiated right, and one that has helped the overall salary structure for players.

MLB salary arbitration is a unique entity. The player submits a contract value for the coming year. The club submits their own contract value. In the event the player and the team can’t compromise, the team and player enter the arbitration process.

An arbiter, chosen by MLB, hears arguments from the team and the player’s representatives in a private hearing. The player is often in the room during the hearing. Many times they do not attend the hearing, preferring not to hear the negative issues presented against them.

From among the two salary figures, the arbiter determines which salary the player will be paid. Either the player’s salary, or the team’s salary is selected by the arbiter. One or the other. Compromise does not take place in the hearing.

During the hearing, the player’s representative presents reasons for the player’s salary figure, sighting personal accomplishments and comparable player salaries from within the industry.

Management, often represented by counsel or a team representative, present all the reasons the player should not be awarded his requested amount.

There is little doubt the player does not appreciate hearing his shortcomings illustrated verbally to the arbiter, and often projected on charts and graphs.

Regarding the player’s personal feelings, nothing good can come from the team’s negative commentary during the hearing. Nothing. And that’s the flaw in the system.

Players are human. They don’t like their accomplishments diminished with what the team perceives to be weaknesses or flaws in the player’s game.

To this old scout, that dirty laundry is best left in the hamper.

In the arbitration case of Burnes vs. the Brewers, the difference in the player’s request and the team’s salary offer was so minimal, all the hard feelings could have been, and should have been avoided.

Burnes is upset. And to this writer, properly so.

Now the Brewers have to live with Burnes’ bad feelings.

Was it worth if for the Brewers Brass?

About Corbin Burnes:

Right-hander Corbin Burnes was a 4th round, 2016 draft selection of the Brewers in 2016.

Burnes was drafted out of St. Mary’s College in Moraga, California.

Burnes received a signing bonus of $536,400 from the Brewers.

Burnes made his major league debut with Milwaukee in 2018, at the age of 23.

Burnes won the National League Cy Young Award in 2021, and has been an All Star in both 2021 and 2022. He was named to the All Major League Baseball Team in 2021.

A terrific pitcher, last year, the year in question regarding Burnes’ salary arbitration case, Burnes had the following pitching lines:

Burnes started 33 games, the most in parts of five big league seasons. He threw 202 innings, pitching to a 2.94 ERA, and a 0.96 WHIP.

Burnes struck out a career high 243 batters, or an average of 10.8 hitters per nine innings, while walking 2.3 hitters per nine. He yielded 23 home runs.

Burnes finished the season with a record of 12-8.

The National League Central Division:

The Brewers finished last season with a record of 86-76, seven games behind the National League Central Division winning St. Louis Cardinals.

On paper, the National League Central has gotten tougher.

The Cardinals estimated 2023 payroll will be $179M, up from $163M.

The Cardinals have replaced likely future Hall of Fame catcher Yadier Molina with Willson Contreras, a very fine addition to their lineup.

The Brewers have traded for Willson Contreras’ brother, William. William is a very fine, very capable addition for the Brewers.

The Brewers also added outfielder Jesse Winker, who is coming off a down season with the Mariners, and pitcher Wade Miley, who was with the Chicago Cubs.

The Cubs have really stepped up their spending, increasing their payroll by $40M, to $187M.

The Brewers have to be concerned about the Cubs, who added a very good shortstop in Dansby Swanson, and first baseman Trey Mancini, who is coming off the worst year of his career.

The Cubs are also giving outfielder Cody Bellinger a chance to jolt his sagging career, signing him to a free agent contract.

First baseman Eric Hosmer, and catcher Tucker Barnhart have joined the Cubs as free agents.

The Cubs also fortified their rotation by adding right-hander, Jameson Taillon.

Conclusions:

The Milwaukee Brewers have reduced their 2023 payroll this offseason.

The Brewers and All Star pitcher Corbin Burnes could not agree on a salary for the coming season.

The Brewers and Burnes wound up settling Burnes’ 2023 salary in an arbitration hearing.

The arbiter chose in favor of the Brewers, resulting in a $10.1M salary for Burnes, or $740,000 less than Burnes had requested.

As expected, Burnes is not happy with the process and the evaluation of his 2023 performance in the team’s verbal remarks to the arbiter.

The net result of his arbitration hearing has the Brewers pitching ace upset and not happy as he enters the new season.

It seems very likely the opposition will pay the price for Corbin Burnes being highly motivated. He is out to prove his employers wrong about their characterization of him during the MLB salary arbitration hearing process.