CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Indians, it seems, have adopted a file-and-trial approach to arbitration.

It means that the next time they sit down to negotiate with right-hander Trevor Bauer, it will be in front of three arbitrators who will determine his salary for 2018. The Indians have offered $5.3 million, while Bauer is seeking $6.52 million.

Bauer's hearing is scheduled for Feb. 8. He made $3.55 million last season.

The Indians went into the offseason with seven players eligible for arbitration including Bauer, Cody Allen, Lonnie Chisenhall, Abraham Almonte, Dan Otero, Zach McAllister and Danny Salazar. They were able to avoid arbitration with six of them.

Chris Antonetti, Indians president of baseball operations, said that when a deal wasn't reached with Bauer before the sides exchanged salary figures on Jan. 12, the organization determined that it would leave the final decision to the arbitration panel. The panel must pick either the team or the player's salary. There is no middle ground.

The basic agreement allows for negotiations to continue after numbers are exchanged. Arbitration is not always a pleasant experience and teams have traditionally gone out of their way to avoid it.

This will be just the third time the Indians have gone to arbitration with a player since 1991. They went with right-handers Vinnie Pestano and Josh Tomlin in 2014 and won both cases. In each case they took a file-and-trial approach.

In 1991 left-hander Greg Swindell beat the Indians in arbitration and second baseman Jerry Browne lost. The meetings were so contentious, however, that team executives John Hart and Dan O'Dowd felt they had to do something to avoid the process in the future. Their solution was to offer players multiyear deals before they reached the required service time to be eligible for arbitration.

It caused a revolution in the industry that is still being practiced by the Indians and other teams to this day.

Bauer, 27, is coming off a great year. He went 17-9 with a 4.19 ERA for the top rotation in the American League. His 17 wins and 196 strikeouts were career highs.

In his last 14 games, including 13 starts, Bauer went 10-1 with a 2.60 ERA. He averaged 10 strikeouts and 3.1 walks per nine innings. Along with teammates Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco, Bauer gave the Indians three pitchers with at least 17 wins in the same season for the first time since 1956.

Last week at Tribe Fest, Bauer told cleveland.com that he was taking a practical approach to arbitration.

"I like to be involved in all aspects of my career," said Bauer. "It'll be what it'll be. . .Ultimately I'm a professional and I come here to do my job and be the best player I can be, the best teammate I can be and contribute to winning a World Series. Regardless of the outcome of the contract negotiations, it's not going to change how I do my job."

New arm: The Indians have signed right-hander Carlos Frias to a minor-league deal. He will report to minor-league camp in Goodyear, Ariz.

Frias made 30 appearances for Class AAA Columbus last season. He went 1-1 with a 8.05 ERA. He struck out 21 and walked 22 in 38 innings.

The 24-year-old Frias has a 6-6 record with the Dodgers over parts of three seasons.