Boone Wins His Arbitration; Angels Must Pay Him $883,000

In an arbitration decision the Angels expected to lose while figuring they had nothing to lose, arbitrator Donald Sears Saturday awarded catcher Bob Boone the $883,000 salary he was seeking.

That was precisely the salary Boone would have made in 1987 had he played the entire season. Last January, Boone spurned an $883,000 proposal by the Angels, became a free agent and then, after receiving no other offers, re-signed with the club on May 1 for $747,153--pro-rated from the Angels’ original offer.

After winning his second consecutive Gold Glove in 1987, Boone requested the same terms when he filed his arbitration figures last month. The Angels, meanwhile, filed at $710,000, asking Sears to approve an unlikely pay cut for the man who became baseball’s all-time leader in games caught last season.

So while it was a predictable defeat for the Angels, the ruling, in essence, didn’t cost them anything.

“Somebody who saw the numbers said that, from the club’s standpoint, we had something to gain and very little to lose because we’d be paying him what he made last year,” Angel General Manager Mike Port said.

“If Bob and his people had filed for $38 million, we might have said no, we won’t arbitrate. But we looked at the numbers and decided it was worthwhile to go ahead. Win or lose, our priority was to secure Bob Boone’s services for the Angels.”

Saturday’s decision left the Angels 0-2 in arbitration cases, both heard by Sears. Last spring, Sears awarded shortstop Dick Schofield $475,000 after the Angels filed for $305,000.

“If you review arbitration procedure, there are winners and losers,” Port said. “We’ve lost some and we’ve won some. This was a good proceeding. . . . Bob should now be comfortable, making a good salary.”

Boone, 40, caught 128 games in 1987 for a career total of 1,936--moving him past Al Lopez (1,918) for the No. 1 spot on the all-time list. It marked the sixth consecutive season that Boone had caught at least 120 games.

Defensively, Boone threw out 41% of potential base stealers, one of the better marks among regular American League catchers. Offensively, he batted .242--up 20 points from his 1986 average--and drove in 33 runs. In 1986, playing in 144 games, Boone had 49 RBIs.

Although Angel pitchers and catchers have already held two days of spring workouts here, Boone has yet to report to camp, delaying his departure until after Friday’s hearing in Los Angeles. Saturday, Angel Manager Gene Mauch couldn’t resist a good-natured jibe about the absence of his workaholic catcher.

“I guess arbitration takes a lot out of you,” Mauch quipped.

Boone, who drove to Mesa Saturday night, is expected to be in uniform and squatting as usual today.