Hot Stove Calendar

Below are the key dates in the 2009-2010 MLB hot stove season.

GM Meetings — November 10-11, 2009
The GM Meetings are really nothing more than a precursor to the Winter Meetings, which take place in the second week of December. Don’t expect much “real” news to come out of these meetings, although plenty of rumors are bound to surface.

First Day Free Agents Can Sign with Any Team — November 20, 2009
Under MLB’s collective bargaining agreement, major league players can file for free agency the day after the World Series ends (that was November 5 this year). At that point, a 15-day period begins in which those players’ 2009 teams have exclusive negotiating rights to attempt to re-sign them. Beginning November 20, any team can negotiate with or sign any free agent player.

40-Man Roster Deadline — November 20, 2009
All MLB teams must also submit their 40-man rosters by this date. Most clubs will keep several roster spots open in order to leave room for offseason acquisitions. Any player not placed on a team’s 40-man roster is eligible for the Rule 5 draft, which takes place during the Winter Meetings in December. Additionally, any team that does not have any empty roster spots cannot participate in the Rule 5 draft.

Deadline for Teams to Offer Arbitration in Order to Receive Compensation — December 1, 2009
Teams must offer arbitration to eligible players by this date, in order to receive compensation (in the form of draft picks) if the player winds up signing elsewhere.

Deadline for Free Agents to Accept Arbitration — December 7, 2009
Players who are offered arbitration by their current teams must accept the offer by this date, or will instead become free agents. If a player does accept arbitration, he has essentially entered into a contractual relationship with their current team.

Winter Meetings — December 7-10, 2009
The apex of the hot stove season, the Winter Meetings takes place this year in Indianapolis. Every team will send multiple representatives to these meetings (owners, GMs, scouts, etc.), and attempt to hammer our much of their offseason trades during this hectic four-day period. The Rule 5 draft also takes place during these meetings, on December 10.

Deadline for Teams to Tender Contracts — December 12, 2009
This deadline, often called the “non-tender” deadline, is the final day for teams to offer contracts to arbitration-eligible players. If a club does not offer arbitration by this date, then that player immediately becomes a free agent. Cash-strapped teams will often non-tender a player rather than engage in potentially costly arbitration.

Arbitration Filing Period — January 5-15, 2010
Arbitration-eligible players will file during this 10-day period, during which teams will actively negotiate with those players in order to avoid arbitration.

Exchange of Salary Srbitration Figures — January 19, 2010
On this date, players who have filed for arbitration and not yet reached an agreement with their current club will present their contractual demands to their teams, and vice-versa. So begins an 11-day period of further negotiations, during which the vast majority of players will agree to terms, thus avoid arbitration.

Arbitration Hearings — February 1-21, 2010
The (usually few) players who have still not agreed to contract terms with their teams will now engage in arbitration hearings. During these hearings, the player and his team will present a one-year contract salary, along with arguments to back up their demands, to a neutral third party. The arbitrator will then decide to either award the player his salary demand or the team’s salary offer (this type of decision is called a “high-low” proceeding).