A player with almost 3 years of Major League service time may become eligible for arbitration.

To qualify, a player must:

• have at least 2 years of service, but less than 3, and;
• have accumulated at least 86 days of service in the previous year, and;
• rank in the top 17% of all 2-year players in service time.

 
The cutoff point generally falls between 2 years, 128 days of service and 2 years, 140 days.