Dodgers Face Early Arbitration Pressure With Several Key Raises Looming

The Los Angeles Dodgers face key decisions as they navigate salary arbitration for six pivotal players, including breakout candidates Andy Pages and Emmet Sheehan.

The Dodgers’ offseason work is already taking shape on two fronts: free agency and arbitration. While nine players have reached the open market, six more are headed into the salary process, giving the club a handful of contract decisions to sort out over the next several months.

Among the players eligible are Alex Call, Jake Cousins, Andy Pages, Emmet Sheehan, Brock Stewart and Gavin Stone. MLB Trade Rumors has put out its projected 2027 salaries for that group, and the numbers range from modest bumps to a major jump for Pages.

Stewart is projected at $1.8 million, followed by Cousins at $1 million, Call at $1.9 million, Sheehan at $2.1 million, Stone at $1.2 million and Pages at $4.9 million.

Pages stands out as the biggest name in the group from a salary standpoint. He’s eligible for arbitration for the first time and is projected to land a sizable raise from the $800,000 he made in 2026.

Sheehan is also entering arbitration for the first time and is in line for a notable increase. His projected $2.1 million salary would be a jump from just over $700,000 this year.

Call is headed through arbitration for the second time, with a projected salary of $1.9 million. That would be a small raise from the $1.6 million he made in 2026.

Stewart, meanwhile, is in his final year of arbitration eligibility before potentially reaching free agency after the 2027 season. He’s projected at $1.8 million, up from $1.3 million in 2026.

Stone is projected to make $1.2 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility, while Cousins is listed at $1 million in his second year of the process. Both pitchers have been out since the 2024 season because of injuries.

Players become arbitration-eligible once they have at least three years of Major League service time but fewer than six, with Super Two players also qualifying.

The Dodgers have until the Jan. 8, 2027, deadline to keep working on deals with those players. If agreements aren’t reached, hearings would run from late January into early February, though that schedule could change if there is an MLB lockout.

At the hearing, a three-person panel chooses either the team’s number or the player’s number for the upcoming season. There’s no middle ground.

Negotiations can continue after the deadline, but Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has traditionally leaned toward a file and trial approach, with exceptions coming when the club is working toward a multi-year contract.

The last time the Dodgers went to arbitration hearings was in 2020, when Pedro Baez and Joc Pederson were involved. Baez won his case, while the panel sided with the Dodgers against Pederson.

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