Rockies Beat Catcher Wilin Rosario In Salary Arbitration

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Colorado defeated catcher Wilin Rosario in salary arbitration Wednesday, and Pittsburgh's Pedro Alvarez and Arizona's Mark Trumbo went to hearings.

Rosario was given a $2.8 million salary instead of his $3.3 million request. Elizabeth Neumeier, Phillip LaPorte and James Oldham heard arguments Tuesday.

Rosario, who turns 26 on Feb. 23, hit .267 with 13 homers and 54 RBIs for the Rockies last year, down from .292 with 21 homers and 79 RBIs in 2013. He made $502,000 last year.

Teams lead players 6-3 with three cases still slated to be heard this week. There had not been this many hearings since teams went 8-6 in 2001.

Kansas City first baseman Eric Hosmer avoided a hearing when he agreed to a $13.9 million, two-year deal that pays him $5.65 million this year and $8.25 million in 2016.

Alvarez asked Robert Herzog, James Oldham and Dan Brent for a raise from $4.25 million to $5.75 million salary, and the Pirates argued the infielder should be paid $5.25 million.

Alvarez, 28, hit .231 with 18 homers and 56 RBIs last year, his poorest season since 2011. He has made 79 errors at third base during the last three seasons, and the Pirates plan to shift him to first.

Trumbo requested a raise from $4.8 million to $6.9 million, and Arizona asked Howard Edelman, Margaret Brogan and Edna Francis to award him $5.3 million.

The 29-year-old outfielder and first baseman hit .235 with 14 homers and 61 RBIs last year, down from 34 homers and 100 RBIs the previous year. He was tied for the NL lead in homers and second in RBIs when he sustained a foot stress fracture less than a month into the season.