While free agency largely dominates the headlines at this point in the MLB offseason, Thursday marks an important deadline for clubs to take care of some other important business ahead of the new season.

Thursday is the deadline for clubs and unsigned players under team control who are eligible for salary arbitration to exchange salary figures. Essentially what that means is the sides must reach an agreement on what the player will earn in 2026, otherwise they’ll potentially go to a hearing sometime in February.

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While teams and players are allowed to continue negotiating right up until that hearing if necessary, the arbitration deadline is typically when most settlements get done. So fans can expect to hear plenty of news breaking about various players agreeing to one-year deals to avoid arbitration.

So what can Red Sox fans expect? And who should fans be paying attention to today? Here’s a breakdown of what salary arbitration is, how it works and which Red Sox players are still working towards a resolution.

What is salary arbitration?

For those unfamiliar, salary arbitration in MLB is a process that determines what certain players get paid in the upcoming season. Players with at least three years but fewer than six years of big league service time are eligible for arbitration, as are a small handful of players with two years that meet certain criteria.

Those “Super Two” players get a fourth year of arbitration. Jarren Duran is one such example.

How it works is if the team and an arbitration-eligible player can’t reach an agreement on a contract for the forthcoming year by a particular deadline — in this case by today — the sides exchange salary figures for the season. The player and club will then go to a hearing and make their case before a panel of arbitrators, who will choose either the player’s figure or the team’s figure, but nothing in between. That will be the player’s salary for the season.

Arbitration hearings are inherently awkward, since they put clubs in a position where they have to argue why one of their players doesn’t deserve to make more money with him in the room. For that reason most teams and players try to avoid a hearing, and the last time the Red Sox went to a hearing with one of their players was Eduardo Rodriguez in 2020.

Who is arbitration eligible?

Entering Thursday the Red Sox had four arbitration-eligible players remaining without a deal for 2026. Those are right-handers Tanner Houck and Johan Oviedo, utility man Romy Gonzalez and first baseman Triston Casas.

The Red Sox have already reached a resolution with several other players, one way or the other.

Originally, Boston’s list of arbitration-eligible players included Duran, catcher Connor Wong, first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, right-handers Kutter Crawford and Josh Winckowski, and left-hander Brennan Bernardino. The Red Sox non-tendered Lowe and Winckowski, making them free agents, and traded Bernardino to the Colorado Rockies.

Duran, Wong and Crawford, meanwhile, have all signed one-year deals for the upcoming season. Duran’s deal is reportedly for $7.7 million, Wong’s deal is for $1.375 million and Crawford’s, which was announced on Tuesday, is for $2.75 million.

What could remaining players earn?

Arbitration doesn’t work the same way as free agency and salaries are determined in large part by identifying comparable players and basing salaries off them. For that reason predicting exactly what any player will get ahead of time is difficult, but MLB Trade Rumors has annually published a list of arbitration projections that have historically hit close to the mark.

This year MLB Trade Rumors projects Houck will earn approximately $3.95 million, Oviedo $2 million, Gonzalez $1.8 million and Casas $1.7 million.

What roles will unsigned players have?

No matter how much he winds up earning, Houck will not pitch for the Red Sox in 2026. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery last August following a disastrous season that saw him endure multiple blowup outings before going on the injured list with a right flexor pronator strain.

Prior to that Houck earned his first career All-Star nod in 2024 but will have a long road to recovery to recapture that form upon taking the mound again in 2027.

Oviedo was acquired by the Red Sox from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Jhostynxon Garcia trade and projects as a contender for the No. 4 or 5 rotation spot. The 27-year-old recently returned after missing all of 2024 due to Tommy John surgery, but in nine starts down the stretch this past season Oviedo pitched well, posting a 3.57 ERA in 40.1 innings.

Last season Gonzalez may have given the Red Sox the best bang for their buck of any player on the team. Despite earning only $774,000 in 2025 he got 315 at bats, batted .305 with an .826 OPS and helped stabilize the club’s infield by filling in at both first and second base. Barring injuries Gonzalez will most likely return to a bench role in 2026.

Casas was originally slated to serve as Boston’s starting first baseman and cleanup hitter in 2025 before he was lost for the season in early May due to a devastating knee injury. Casas’ status for Opening Day remains a question mark, though the Red Sox have since acquired Willson Contreras to play first, throwing Casas’ future role into doubt.