Spencer Turnbull headed to arbitration hearing; Detroit Tigers agree to terms with 7 players
LAKELAND, Fla. — For the first time since 2019, the Detroit Tigers are taking their negotiations to a salary arbitration hearing.
The Tigers and right-handed starting pitcher Spencer Turnbull did not agree on a contract for the 2022 season by Tuesday's 1 p.m. deadline for arbitration-eligible players and are preparing for an arbitration hearing, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.
The hearing will take place at some point during the regular season.
MORE: Spencer Turnbull's year ran the gamut: From no-hitter to Tommy John surgery
The two sides are over $700,000 apart, with Turnbull asking for $2.1 million and the Tigers offering $1.325 million. The Tigers operate with a file-and-trial strategy, meaning there will not be further discussions about Turnbull's salary for 2022 until the hearing.
At the hearing, a panel of arbiters will choose one side or the other.
Turnbull is recovering from Tommy John surgery in late July, after throwing the eighth no-hitter in franchise history in May. He finished the 2021 season with a 2.88 ERA, 12 walks and 44 strikeouts over 50 innings in nine starts. His 1.5 fWAR led the team's starting pitchers.
The 29-year-old could miss the entire 2022 season. MLB Trade Rumors projected Turnbull to receive $1.8 million for 2022, but he will make either $2.1 million or $1.325 million.
JEFF SEIDEL:22 untold stories, observations and wild predictions about the 2022 Tigers
The Tigers agreed to one-year contracts with their other arbitration-eligible players: third baseman Jeimer Candelario ($5.8 million), right-handed reliever Michael Fulmer ($4.95 million), righty reliever Jose Cisnero (undisclosed), righty reliever Joe Jimenez (undisclosed), catcher Dustin Garneau ($1.175 million), utility man Harold Castro ($1.275 million) and outfielder Victor Reyes (undisclosed).
Turnbull is the team's only arbitration-eligible player unsigned. It's his first year of arbitration eligibility.
In 2019, the Tigers and Fulmer went to an arbitration hearing in St. Petersburg, Florida, the organization's first arbitration hearing since 2001. The panel sided with the team's $2.8 million salary figure over Fulmer's $3.4 million request.
The Tigers also agreed Tuesday to contracts with all pre-arbitration eligible players on contracts for the 2022 season, a formality for players not yet eligible to negotiate their salaries.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Spencer Turnbull to have salary arbitration hearing
