• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Cleveland Daily

Cleveland Sports News, Rumors & Highlights

  • Home
  • Guardians News
  • Cavs News
  • Browns News
  • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • About

A Service-Time Manipulation Explainer For Indians Fans

By Steven Kubitza March 16, 2021 @kubitzawrites

Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan addresses the crowd prior to the Opening Day Major League Baseball game between the Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians on April 11, 2017, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. Cleveland defeated Chicago 2-1 in ten innings.
(Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

 

The Cleveland Indians have a number of exciting prospects in the organization fans can’t wait to see.

But anytime we bring them up, the idea of service-time manipulation must be mentioned.

So what does that term mean?

It has to do with MLB’s convoluted financial structure and how long players have to wait before hitting free agency.

Let’s break it down in simple terms.

 

The Practice of Service-Time Manipulation

There are many caveats to this system, but we will go over it in its most basic sense.

MLB players need six years of service to qualify for free agency.

A year of service is 172 days on the active roster.

After three years of service, players are eligible for arbitration.

Teams want to keep players cost-controlled for as long as possible, even if they can help the team in the present.

So what do teams do to ensure that happens?

They manipulate the service time.

For example, it is not uncommon for teams to call up a top prospect right at the time when he won’t qualify for a full year of service.

Someone like Nolan Jones, who may be ready now, will be called up in May or June to prevent him from getting his first full year of service.

Roster moves today:

Optioned to @CLBClippers
INF Nolan Jones
RHP Carlos Vargas
LHP Scott Moss
RHP Eli Morgan
RHP Jean Carlos Mejía

Reassigned to Depth Camp
RHP Kyle Dowdy
OF Billy Hamilton

Traded to @Reds for cash
INF Mike Freeman

+Roster at 48 players

— Tribeinsider (@tribeinsider) March 12, 2021

This is the manipulation in its most basic sense.

Teams have their timelines and know exactly when players can be called up.

That is why Francisco Lindor only appeared in 99 games for the Indians back in 2015.

He was already talented enough to start right away, but the team waited on his clock and it started ticking in 2016 instead.

 

Will This Happen in 2021?

The short answer is yes.

This always happens.

This is an open secret by front offices who may claim they want young players to get just a bit more time in the minors before reaching the majors.

Ultimately, it is a bad lie.

Things are also different in 2021 as the entire minor league season has been pushed back to start in May.

Teams will opt for prospects to go to minor league camp or the alternate training site instead of getting live game action in April.

That is just the way the league operates.

Service time manipulation isn’t a Dolan issue. It makes a lot of sense for certain teams because of the construct MLB has created.

There are plenty of reasons to hate on the Dolans, but Nolan Jones is not one. https://t.co/Pv1K6YWU6t

— Gage (@GageEHC) March 12, 2021

Obviously, this causes tension between players and clubs.

Why would a player want to re-sign with a team that purposely limited his play for a year?

Anything can happen on a baseball field and ultimately, players shouldn’t have their earnings limited by this manipulation.

This explains why the Indians routinely have had players in the Opening Day lineup who are gone within weeks.

The players and owners are going to have to figure out how to solve this problem during the next collective bargaining process.

Both players and fans are hurt when top talent is not on the field strictly for financial reasons.

Recent News

Richie Palacios #9 of the Cleveland Guardians celebrates a 2-1 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on June 17, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.
What To Watch For In Guardians’ Series Versus Yankees
Military aircraft fly over Progressive Field during the national anthem prior to the home opener of the Cleveland Guardians against the San Francisco Giants on April 15, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. All players are wearing the number 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The Giants defeated the Guardians 4-1.
Cleveland Guardians Studs & Duds In June
Steven Kwan #38 of the Cleveland Guardians steals second base during the third inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field on June 29, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio.
What’s Behind The Guardians’ Recent Skid?

Filed Under: Cleveland Guardians Rumors And News (Updated Daily), Cleveland Indians News And Rumors (Updated Daily) Tagged With: cleveland indians

About Steven Kubitza

Steven has been an Indians fan since the day he was born. Lucky enough to not remember the World Series losses in the 90s, he will never forget the magic and the heartbreak of Game 7 in 2016. He wore the No. 13 playing baseball growing up because of Omar and still rocks a Cody Allen jersey for good luck.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search Cleveland Daily

Footer

Privacy Policy

Terms And Conditions

Contact Us

Copyright © 2022 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - ClevelandDaily.com is not affiliated with the Cleveland Indians or Major League Baseball.