Thu, 02/02/2012 - 2:21pm — Dr. aaron b

Both guys have minor league options left. So even worst case you are still going to save some service time on each guy.

Randy Wells is a 3.016 right now. So if you keep him in Iowa for 17 days you get to keep him through 2016.

Travis Wood is at 1.039 right now. So 40 days in Iowa will keep him under club control thru 2018.

Byrd has no future with the club at this point either way. He's window dressing on a 100 loss team this year.

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DR AARON B: Right now Randy Wells is under club control only through the 2014 season. To be under club control through the 2015 season, he would have to lose those 16 days over three seasons (3+016) he has now, plus at least one more day.

To get there in 2012, Wells would have to spend at least 28 days (not 17 days) on Optional Assignment to the minors.

Here's why:

If a player spends 19 or fewer days on Optional Assignment in a given season, he gets credit for a full year of MLB Service Time. (A "full season" of MLB Service Time is 172 days, but the MLB regular season actually is 183 days).

So if Wells is optioned to the minors for a total of 19 days or less in 2012 he gets credit for a full season MLB Service Time.

If he spends more than 19 days on Optional Assignmentf he cannot get credit for a full season, but the first 11 days on Optional Assignment don't count because of the difference betwen the MLB regular season (183 days) and what constitutes a full season of MLB Service Time (172 days).

Only AFTER the first 11 days can you start to count the 17 days needed.

So that's why it's 28 days.

Likewise with Travis Wood.

To get an extra year of club control, T. Wood would need to spend at least 51 days on Optional Assignment in 2012, because the first 11 days don't count, and then he still needs 40 more.

BTW, if a player is optioned to the minors during Spring Training, time spent on Optional Assignment prior to MLB Opening Day does not count for anything, other than relieving the club of having to pay him at the MLB salary rate if he is injured prior to Opening Day (an injured player cannot be optioned to the minors).

Also, the following players have accrued less than five years of MLB Service Time through the 2011 season (so they cannot refuse an Optional Assignment to the minors) and have options remaining (so they can be optioned), but each must clear Optional Assignment Waivers before they can be optioned to the minors in 2012:

Blake DeWitt
Matt Garza
Andy Sonnanstine
Ian Stewart
Chris Volstad
Randy Wells

(Bryan LaHair, Marcos Mateo, Jeff Samardzija, and Geovany Soto have each accrued less than five years of MLB Service Time through the 2011 season, too, but they have no minor league options left, and Lendy Castillo cannot be optioned to the minors because he is a Rule 5 player).

Optional Assignment Waivers are revocable (so the waiver request can be rescinded if the player is claimed) and are required to option any player who made his debut on an MLB 25-man roster (MLB Active List) at least three or more years previous, or two or more years previous if the player spent one full season on Optional Assignment prior to making his debut on a 25-man roster, or one year or more previous if the player spent at least two full seasons on Optional Assignment to the minors prior to making his debut on an MLB 25-man roster.

Sometimes you will see a club DFA a player during the MLB regular season and then option him to the minors a few days later. That's because Optional Assignment Waivers must be secured before he can be optioned, and it takes two days to get a player through waivers.

Optional Assignment Waivers can be requested anytime February 16th through August 31st, and once secured, the waivers are generally good for the entire waiver period (but only through August 31st for the waiver period that starts on August 1st), so the club does not have to keep securing waivers if they want to move the player back & forth to the minors more than one time during the course of that waiver period.

Normally a player who is Designated for Assignment (DFA) must be either traded, released, or outrighted, but DURING THE MLB REGULAR SEASON a player can be Designated for Assignment (which temporarily takes him off both the 25-man and 40-man roster) and then can be optioned to the minors as long as the assignment is made within 10 days, and as long as the player was not replaced on the club's 40-man roster by another player while on the Designated List (DFA). Then once the waivers are secured, the player can be optioned to the minors, and the player is returned to the club's MLB 40-man roster at that time. (And players do accrue MLB Service Time while on the Designated List).

Optional Assignment Waivers (like Trade Assignment Waivers) are revocable the first time they are requested in a given waiver period, but they become irrevocable if the player is placed on Optional Assignment Waivers again during that waiver period.

yes, you certainly aren't going to make your case using free agents as a comp. And to further complicate it, players that signed multi-year extensions within their arbitration years (Hamels, Cain, Nolasco for example) are usually not part of the discussion.