Pagliarulo Loses at Arbitration; LaPoint Wins

Mike Pagliarulo of the New York Yankees lost his arbitration case, Dave LaPoint of the Chicago White Sox won his, and Terry Pendleton and Scott Garrelts settled on one-year contracts Wednesday, reducing the players remaining in arbitration to 34.

Pagliarulo was awarded $500,000 by arbitrator Lawrence Holden instead of the $675,000 he sought. He made $175,000 in 1987 and could have had $587,500 this year had he accepted an offer to split the difference from Yankee General Manager Lou Piniella before the hearing.

“I don’t feel bad at all about the decision,” said Pagliarulo, who batted .234 last season with 32 home runs and 87 runs batted in. “This is something I just thought I had to do. There certainly aren’t any hard feelings toward the Yankees.”

LaPoint, 6-3 in 1987 with a 2.94 earned-run average, was awarded $425,000 by arbitrator Fred Reel instead of the $265,000 offered by the White Sox. He made $165,000 in 1987, became a free agent and accepted Chicago’s offer of arbitration.

Owners have won six of the eight cases decided this winter and lead, 144-113, since the process began in 1974.

Garrelts settled on a one-year, $625,000 contract with San Francisco and gets a $335,000 raise. He can earn an additional $215,000 in incentive bonuses. Garrelts had sought $795,000, and the Giants had offered $590,000.

Pendleton, who will make $660,000 this year, had asked St. Louis for $795,000 in arbitration and was offered $550,000. Last year, when the third baseman made $190,000, he hit .286 with 12 homer runs and 96 RBIs.