Howard Asks For 18 Million

Arbitration eligible Ryan Howard requested 18 million dollars in arbitration, an eight million dollar raise from last year. The Phillies responded with 14 million, and may have the edge in this case. Howard did play in all 162 games, plus 14 playoffs games, but saw drops in OBP, SLG, and AVG, and made seven more errors than he did in 2007. On the other hand, he did lead the league in homeruns and runs batted in, and was sixth in slugging despite the dip from 2007.

The Phillies are going to have a tough time signing Howard long term if they have to go to arbitration with him for the second year in a row. It is a very awkward process where teams have point out the negatives in their player and why they think their contract is more reasonable than the one the player has offered.