Rangers, Diekman avoid arbitration with $1.255 million deal

Hard-throwing left-hander Jake Diekman and the Texas Rangers avoided arbitration late Friday on a one-year deal worth $1,255,000, an agreement that leaves Mitch Moreland as the only arbitration-eligible player without a 2016 contract.

Arbitration hearings are scheduled to begin Monday, with Sunday acting as a soft deadline to avoid the process. If the sides don’t come together by Sunday, they can continue to work toward a settlement before Moreland’s scheduled hearing the week of Feb. 8.

The sides were $1.325 million apart Jan. 15, when Moreland filed at $6 million and the Rangers were at $4.675 million. The Rangers haven’t been to a hearing since 2000, when they were $1.2 million apart from Lee Stevens.

The panel sided with the Rangers.

Moreland tied for the team lead with 23 homers in his best major-league season. He batted .278 with 85 RBIs, both career-highs.

Diekman came to the Rangers in the Cole Hamels trade and was a key part of the Rangers’ bullpen overhaul. Diekman, whose fastball has reached 100 mph, went 0-0 with a 2.09 ERA and a 1.69 opponents average in 21  2/3 innings after the July 31 trade.

He had been seeking $1.55 million, and the Rangers filed at $975,000.

The Rangers also announced that they signed right-hander Steve Johnson to a minor-league deal with an invitation to big-league spring training.

This story was originally published January 29, 2016 at 8:04 PM with the headline "Rangers, Diekman avoid arbitration with $1.255 million deal."