The organization failed to avoid arbitration with Miller on Thursday.
On Thursday, the Seattle Mariners avoided arbitration with six players for the 2026 season. The only one they didn't come to an agreement with was starting pitcher Bryce Miller.
Since the two sides couldn't come to terms before the deadline, now they formally exchange numbers with each other.
The Mariners reportedly want to pay Miller $2.2 million, while Miller's side wants just over $2.6 million. There's a few things that can happen now.
1) Now that they know where each other stands, the two sides can still agree to a deal, most likely in the middle of those two figures. They will have about three weeks to come to that agreement.
2) If they still can't agree in that time, then the two sides go to arbitration court, where an independent arbiter decides the contract. Arbitration hearings can hamper relationships between players and teams and are generally seen as a bad thing.
So, with all that said, should we be worried about what's going on between the Mariners and Miller? We talked about it on the most recent edition of the 'Refuse to Lose' podcast:
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Going to arbitration court is never a good thing. That said, the Mariners have three weeks with Bryce Miller to close a gap of or to close a difference of $400,000. I imagine that this deal will be settled upon and that Bryce Miller and the Mariners will meet in the middle and he'll end up at 2.4 or 2.5 or 2.38 or whatever, and everyone will go on. It will be no worse for the wear.
And Bryce Miller will be a Mariner. He will be happy to be a Mariner. He will have a contract that makes him happy. His people will be happy. The Mariners will be happy. That is fully what I expect to happen.
So the Mariners agreed to avoid arbitration with six players. I think that is excellent. You saw that happen a lot around baseball. There will be some cases that go to court and get contentious. I don't believe the Mariners will be there with Bryce Miller, and I think ultimately everybody will end up fine.
Um, so I'm not worried. I'm not bothered.
About Miller
Now 27 years old, Miller is a three-year veteran who made his major league debut in 2023. He's gone 24-21 total with a 4.01 ERA. This past season was the most frustrating of his career, as he made only 18 regular season starts because of injury, pitching to a 5.68 ERA. He was better in the playoffs, earning a key win for the Mariners in Games 1 of the American League Championship Series.
He had been projected to make $2.4 million by MLBTradeRumors.
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