CLEVELAND — Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor has signed a one-year deal for the 2019 season to avoid arbitration, according to the team.
Reports claim Lindor’s deal is worth $10.55 million.
Lindor had 38 home runs, 92 RBIs, and held a .277 batting average in the 2018 season.
In addition to avoiding arbitration with Lindor, the Indians also claimed 27-year-old A.J. Cole from the New York Yankees, the team reported.
Cole began his career on the Washington Nationals before he was purchased by the Yankees.
Cole has had 54 Major League appearances since debuting with the Nats in 2015 and has a career Minor League ERA of 3.94 in 161 games and 155 starts.
The Indians were unable to reach a deal with pitcher Trevor Bauer before the arbitration deadline.
For those wondering what arbitration is, MLB.com explains it as:
If the club and player have not agreed on a salary by a deadline in mid-January, the club and player must exchange salary figures for the upcoming season. Unsurprisingly, the club files a lower number than the player does. After the figures are exchanged, a hearing is scheduled in February. If no one-year or multi-year settlement can be reached by the hearing date, the case is brought before a panel of arbitrators. After hearing arguments from both sides, the panel selects either the salary figure of either the player or the club (but not one in between) as the player's salary for the upcoming season.
