Ryan Howard won his arbitration case with/against the Phillies. The $10 million awarded to him is tied for the largest amount ever awarded to a player in arbitration.
To be honest, I thought the Phillies had a pretty good case, given the rules of MLB's collective bargaining agreement concerning service time, etc. But obviously the arbiters saw things differently, considering matters I didn't think they would.
For instance, when Tal Smith was hired by the Phillies, I thought that meant the arbiters would be swayed by sabermetric thinking. Such a mind-set would mean that Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera, two players most often used as comparables, stacked up better than Howard and therefore, the $7 million the Phillies offered was closer to correct.
But here's where Howard probably won his case: star-power. Consider Subsection 12 of Article IV, Section F, which lays out the admissible in an arbitration hearing [hat tip: One Chair]:
"the quality of the player's contribution to his club during the past season... This includes - but is not limited to - his overall on-field performance, his leadership abilities, and his public appeal..."
Howard is everywhere. He has a major endorsement deals with Subway and Adidas and graces the cover of video games and magazines. And don't forget, locally, the Phillies market the heck out of him too.
He's likable, and he's someone you feel perfectly fine letting your kids look up to. As Phillies fans, we should feel lucky to have him. I know I do.
Now, let's hope that if or when Cole Hamels comes to arbitration, the three-person panel that decides his salary has never heard of colehamelsfacts.com.
