Projected Padres 2020 arbitration salaries

MLB Trade Rumors has published their most recent arbitration projections for the 2020 MLB season, and, if the site’s calculations are correct, the Padres will have some tough decisions to make this winter.

According to these calculations, Padres GM AJ Preller—who is already dealing with a 40-man roster crunch this offseason—will have to carefully consider whether certain players are truly deserving of their 2020 arbitration awards. Hunter Renfroe ($3.4MM), Kirby Yates ($6.5MM), and Austin Hedges ($2.9MM) are all projected to see significant raises over their 2019 salaries.

Certain players may be easy non-tender candidates. A combined $3.6MM for Robbie Erlin and Carl Edwards Jr., for example, likely isn’t going to fit into Preller’s budget, considering that both players might only receive minor league deals on the open market.

MLBTR’s arbitration model was said by the site in 2016 to be about 65% accurate at predicting arbitration salaries within a 10% margin of error. The complete projections are as follows:

• Robbie Erlin – $2.0MM
• Kirby Yates – $6.5MM
• Greg Garcia – $1.7MM
• Austin Hedges – $2.9MM
• Travis Jankowski – $1.2MM
• Carl Edwards Jr. – $1.6MM
• Luis Perdomo – $1.0MM
• Matt Strahm – $1.5MM
• Manuel Margot – $2.1MM
• Hunter Renfroe – $3.4MM
• Dinelson Lamet – $1.7MM