6 Orioles file for arbitration: Slugger Chris Davis was among six Orioles players who filed for salary arbitration on Tuesday night, the first step toward settling on contracts for 2014. Catcher Matt Wieters and pitchers Tommy Hunter, Brian Matusz, Bud Norris and Troy Patton also filed, joining 140 other players from across the Major Leagues who are under team control, with less than six years of service time. The O's will exchange proposed salary figures with each player on Friday, and contract negotiations then can continue until a hearing. Those are scheduled between Feb. 1-21, although in most cases, the two sides settle on a deal -- in some cases even a multiyear agreement -- before then. In the event of a hearing, both parties present their case to a three-member panel of judges that weighs the arguments and chooses one of the two proposed salaries. Decisions are based on previous salaries awarded to players of similar service time and performance. Davis, Hunter, Norris and Wieters all are set to become free agents after the 2015 season and currently are in their second of three arbitration years. Each figures to receive a raise, especially Davis, who led the Majors with 53 home runs and 138 RBIs last year while making $3.3 million. Matusz and Patton also likely are in for a small salary boost as they enter their first year of arbitration.
