Arbitration

Agent Craig Fenech was about to argue his first salary-arbitration case when his client, former Orioles pitcher Dave Schmidt, reminded him not to lose his temper.Sound advice, but Schmidt couldn't follow it himself. Once Texas blamed him for the unearned runs he allowed in 1984 -- that's right, the runs deleted from his ERA because of poor fielding by his teammates."The minute the meeting was over, I almost had to peel Dave Schmidt off [Texas general manager] Tom Grieve," Fenech recalls. "He was in Tom's face, yelling to trade him, get him the hell out of there."

Orioles reliever Jim Johnson, who saved nine games in 2011 including his final eight opportunities, has settled his potential arbitration case with the Orioles. According to an industry source, Johnson has agreed to a 2012 contract worth $2.625 million. That is up from the $975,000 he made in 2011. It was Johnson's second shot at arbitration. He also settled last offseason. The 28-year-old Johnson, who was 6-5 with a 2.67 ERA, set career highs as an Oriole last season in wins, innings pitched (91)

Jason Hammel's breakout season in 2012 was rewarded Friday when he agreed to a one-year, $6.75 million deal with the Orioles to avoid arbitration. He could make up to $300,000 more in performance incentives. Closer Jim Johnson also agreed to a one-year deal Friday ($6.5 million) , leaving just reliever Darren O'Day as the only arbitration-eligible player remaining on the club. Hammel, 30, went 8-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 20 starts for the Orioles last season. Acquired last February from the Colorado Rockies in a deal for Jeremy Guthrie, Hammel emerged as the club's top starter in the first half of the season, but a knee injury required surgery and limited his second half to just three regular season games.

The Orioles yesterday avoided arbitration with second baseman Bret Barberie, who signed a contract worth $958,750 for this season.His hearing had been scheduled for Wednesday."

A PEEVED READER, James Genden of Evanston, Ill., sent me a notice he received from his credit-card bank, MBNA. Many of you have received similar notices, probably without reading them. MBNA has instituted mandatory arbitration for customer disputes. New customers have been subject to the rule since December. Starting Tuesday, existing customers will be covered, too, unless the bank received a letter from them by Jan. 25, rejecting the process. Few customers probably read MBNA's fine-print notice, even though it was headed "Important Amendments to Your Credit Card Agreement."

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court stepped into a spreading maritime law conflict among lower federal courts yesterday, agreeing to settle the legality of contracts requiring that disputes over cargo loss or damage go to an arbitration panel in another country.The court voted to hear a case involving $1 million-plus in damage to a ship's cargo of oranges bound from Morocco to a Massachusetts port.The Panamanian owner of the cargo ship is seeking to take the dispute over the loss to a Japanese arbitration tribunal tied to the Japan Shipping Exchange, but the insurer of the damaged cargo wants the case handled in a U.S. court.

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court took up yesterday its first case on moves by employers to avoid court fights over employees' complaints of job discrimination, but decided it without giving business any broad guidance on the issue.A test case involving a Charlotte, N.C., stock broker who felt he was fired because of his age -- 62 -- had been watched closely for the court's reaction to attempts by employers to require workers to go to arbitration, not to court, with their grievances about workplace bias.

ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Baltimore Orioles general manager Roland Hemond hinted yesterday that the club would offer salary arbitration to free-agent catcher Mickey Tettleton this week.The deadline for offering arbitration is midnight Friday. Tettleton then would have until Dec. 19 to decide whether to accept it. Agent Tony Attanasio already has said that Tettleton will accept the offer if he does not have another suitable offer by then.Hemond stopped short of saying directly that the offer would be made, but conceded that it was the only way the club could protect its interests.

Righthander Bob Milacki became the first Orioles player to take the club to an arbitration hearing in 12 years yesterday, but the ruling will not be delivered until today.Milacki and agents Alan and Randy Hendricks presented their case to arbitrator Anthony Sinicropi in an afternoon session at the O'Hare Airport Hyatt Hotel outside Chicago. Club counsel Lon Babby, general manager Roland Hemond and assistant GM Frank Robinson represented the Orioles at the hearing.Sinicropi is expected to announce today whether Milacki will be granted the $1.18 million salary he requested during the arbitration filing process or the $700,000 figure submitted by the club.

The county firefighters union has asked an Anne Arundel circuit judge to order county officials to participate in binding arbitration to resolve their labor dispute.The firefighters are entitled to arbitration because the union's 550 members never ratified the contract approved by the County Council on May 30, which is being enforced by the county, said Sarah Harlan, lawyer for Local 1563 of the Anne Arundel County Professional Firefighters.Harlan said the pact should not be in effect because the previous contract included an "evergreen clause" specifying that it should remain in effect until a new contract is ratified.