Jason Adams beats Rays in salary arbitration - MLB

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Reliever Jason Adam beat Tampa Bay in the first of four arbitration cases involving the Rays and will get $1.775 million instead of the team’s offer of $1.55 million.

Adam was 2-3 with a career-low 1.56 ERA and a career-best eight saves in 67 relief appearances last season, striking out 75 and walking 17 in 63 1/3 innings. The right-hander earned $1.15 million.

Arbitrators Jasbir Parmar, Margaret Brogan and Stephen Raymond made the decision a day after hearing arguments.

Tampa Bay also is awaiting decisions in the cases of relievers Ryan Thompson ($1.2 million vs. $1 million) and Colin Poche ($1.3 million vs. $1.175 million) and outfielder Harold Ramirez ($2.2 million vs. $1.9 million). Those decisions are being held for cases involving other players to be argued or settled next week.

Players and teams have split six decisions.

All-Star pitcher Max Fried ($13.5 million) lost to Atlanta, outfielder Kyle Tucker was beat by Houston and reliever Diego Castillo ($2.95 million) was defeated by Seattle.

Pitcher Jesus Luzardo ($2.45 million) and AL batting champion Luis Arraez ($6.1 million) both beat Miami.

A decision also is pending for Los Angeles Angels outfielder Hunter Renfroe.

Ten players remain scheduled for hearings, which run through Feb. 17.

Houston Astros star Jose Altuve had surgery Wednesday on his broken right thumb, an injury that occurred in the World Baseball Classic and will significantly delay the second baseman’s 2023 debut.

The Astros announced that the 32-year-old Altuve had the procedure done in Houston and will stay there to begin his rehabilitation, with only one week left in spring training. The Astros will fly there on Sunday following their final Grapefruit League game in Florida, before playing a pair of exhibitions against their Triple-A team, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, in Texas.

Altuve was hit by a pitch on Saturday while playing for Venezuela in the WBC. He might not be ready to return to the lineup until at least late May. The eight-time All-Star and 2017 American League MVP batted .300 with 103 runs, 28 homers and 18 steals for the World Series champion Astros last season. Mauricio Dubón and David Hensley are the leading candidates to fill in for Altuve at second base.

Altuve isn’t the only Major League Baseball star who was hurt in WBC play, of course. Mets closer Edwin Díaz will miss the 2023 season because of a torn patellar tendon in his right knee as the freak result of an on-field celebration following a WBC win by the Puerto Rico national team.

BROWN DOWN

The Astros also scratched right-hander Hunter Brown from his scheduled start Wednesday against the Mets in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Manager Dusty Baker told reporters that Brown, who is ranked by MLB as the organization’s top prospect and competing for the last spot in the rotation, has discomfort in his lower back.

NOT QUITE READY

The New York Mets sent catcher Francisco Álvarez to Triple-A Syracuse, quashing for now the possibility of putting the prized 21-year-old on the opening day roster.

Álvarez, who made his major league debut with the Mets near the end of last season, had just three hits in 28 at-bats in Grapefruit League exhibition games. Ranked by MLB as the third-best prospect in baseball, Álvarez batted .260 with 27 homers and 78 RBIs in a combined 112 minor league games in 2022 at Double-A and Triple-A.

The Mets have newcomer Omar Narváez, a 2021 All-Star with the Milwaukee Brewers, as their primary catcher with Tomás Nido likely to play mostly against left-handed pitchers.

Speaking of the Mets, Díaz turned 29 on Wednesday – a rather subdued milestone for the right-hander considering his situation. Diaz nonetheless posted in Spanish an upbeat message on his Twitter account, thanking God for another year of life and describing his health as good and his outlook as positive in this initial stage of the roughly eight-month rehabilitation process.