NEW YORK (AP) – Pitchers Guillermo Mota, Kyle Farnsworth and B.J. Ryan all avoided salary arbitration Wednesday by settling at the midpoint between their requests and the offers by their teams.

Unable to reach compromises, Anaheim shortstop David Eckstein and Pittsburgh shortstop Jack Wilson argued their cases before arbitrators.

In the day’s one free-agent signing, reliever Ricky Bottalico agreed to a minor league contract with the New York Mets.

Mota and the Los Angeles Dodgers settled at $1,475,000. The 30-year-old right-hander, expected to be the primary setup man for Eric Gagne this season, asked for $1.75 million and was offered $1.2 million. Mota was 6-3 with a 1.97 ERA and one save in 76 appearances last year while earning $675,000.

Farnsworth and the Chicago Cubs agreed at $1.4 million. The 27-year-old right-hander, who went 3-2 with a 3.30 ERA last season and made $600,000, asked for $1.7 million and was offered $1.1 million.

Ryan and the Baltimore Orioles compromised at $1,275,000, halfway between the $1.55 million he asked for and the $1 million the team offered. The 28-year-old left-hander made $762,500 last year and went 4-1 with a 3.40 ERA in 76 appearances, which tied the team record set by Tippy Martinez.

At a hearing in Phoenix, Eckstein asked for a raise from $425,000 to $2.15 million, while the Angels argued he should be paid $1.6 million. He hit .252 last season with three homers, 31 RBIs and 16 steals.

Arbitrators Roger Kaplan, Stephen Goldberg and Jack Clarke are expected to decide Thursday.

Wilson requested his salary be raised from $335,000 to $1.85 million instead of Pittsburgh’s $1.4 million offer.

It was the first hearing for the Pirates since they beat third baseman Jeff King in 1993. Wilson batted .256 last year with nine homers and 62 RBIs. His case was heard by arbitrators Dan Brent, Elisabeth Neumeier and I.B. Helburn.

Owners are 2-0 thus far, with Montreal first baseman Nick Johnson and Cincinnati pitcher Chris Reitsma both losing their cases. Ten players remain scheduled for hearings through Feb. 20.

Bottalico would get a $500,000, one-year contract if he is added to the Mets’ 40-man roster and the chance to earn $300,000 in performance bonuses. The 34-year-old right-hander, an All-Star in 1996, pitched in just two major league games last year, going 1-0 with a 5.40 ERA in 1 2-3 innings with Arizona.

He was 2-2 with a 3.66 ERA in 31 games with the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A Tucson farm team in the Pacific Coast League.

AP-ES-02-11-04 1943EST