Rockies, Charlie Blackmon agree to one-year contract, avoid arbitration for 2018

The Colorado Rockies have avoided arbitration with Charlie Blackmon. Jon Heyman is reporting that the Rockies have agreed to a one-year, $14 million deal with their star outfielder. The salary is a bit higher than the $13.4 million that MLB Trade Rumors had projected.

Blackmon was projected to receive a record raise in his final year of arbitration after having an MVP-caliber season last year for the Rockies. Blackmon was fifth in the final MVP vote after hitting .331/.399/.601 and 37 home runs from the leadoff spot. Blackmon lead the majors in plate appearances, hits, runs, total bases and triples while also winning the National League batting title.

There was hope among Rockies fans that Blackmon and the Rockies might agree to a long-term deal during these negotiations, but it now seems very likely that Blackmon will be headed to free agency next offseason.

This is the second arbitration eligible player that the Rockies have agreed to terms to ahead of the arbitration process. after agreeing to a one-year, $1.29 million deal with reliever Chris Rusin yesterday. The deadline for teams and players to exchange numbers is 11 am MT today, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Rockies agree to a few more deals today. DJ Lemahieu, Chad Bettis, and Zac Rosscup are the remaining arbitration eligible players for the Rockies.