The Baltimore Orioles reached an agreement with catcher Matt Wieters (and agent Scott Boras) last night on a salary for the 2014 season, avoiding arbitration. Wieters will make $7.7 million, after asking for $8.75 million. Wieters was the last player with whom the Orioles needed to reach a deal to avoid arbitration, so now that’s one thing off of GM Dan Duquette’s plate. According to MASN’s Roch Kubatko, the Orioles have talked with Boras twice already regarding an extension for Wieters. Publically it seems that Wieters is relying on his agent to handle all of this for him, but obviously in reality we don’t know how involved he is in the process.
One has to hope that the fact that this was settled without an arbitration date even having been
scheduled weighs somewhat in Boras’ mind. Boras’ “shenanigans” have been well documented here on Birds Watcher as well as on other sites. He obviously would rather Wieters hit the open market, however if behind-the-scenes efforts are any indication the Orioles will probably try to get him re-signed. Wieters is under team control until after next season – so there’s still time.
Centerfielder Adam Jones was also honored last night by The Babe Ruth Museum in Baltimore, who awarded him with their annual Community Service Award which is given out each year during Babe’s Birthday Bash. The award is given to a current or former athlete with Maryland ties that has shown a strong devotion to the community. Jones does a lot of charity work in the area through various outlets (including Orioles Reach), so the award is well-deserved.