Phillies' JT Realmuto Loses Arbitration Case for Second Time in His Career

Two-time All-Star JT Realmuto is a great catcher who was of great use to the Miami Marlins before heading to the Philadelphia Phillies to do the same. However, for the second time in his career, Realmuto has fallen short in salary arbitration proceedings.

Realmuto had a solid season last year, batting .275 while hitting 25 homers and knocking in 83 RBI. He had asked for $12.4 million, but an arbitrator decided that he'll make $10 million next season instead.

The difference in salary shouldn't be crippling for Realmuto, but that's not the point. The bigger issue is the fact that for the second year in a row, Realmuto and his team couldn't agree on a number, forcing a stressful arbitration process. When he eventually becomes a free agent, Realmuto may factor these hearings into his decision.

The team knows just how good their catcher is, of course. Seriously, just listen to what new Phils skipper Joe Girardi had to say about him.

At some point, it is just about the disrespect. If the team truly believed in what Girardi was saying, they should have just paid him the extra $2 million and eschewed the whole arbitration headache. Hopefully, both parties can put this episode behind them and move on.