Usually, not exactly. From the FAQ: "Arbitration eligibility and minor league options are two different things, although most of the time they coincide. Arbitration eligibility is simple in HBD: anybody with between 3 and 5 years of big league experience is arbitration eligible."
Also, willingness to re-sign or sign long term is tied to the Patience rating. Extreme scenario, I had a pitcher with 99 Patience who I moved up and between ML and AAA a few times. I ended up sending him through arbitration five times, and even at the end of his contract he was still willing to sign long term if I wanted.
Also, you can usually arb a guy twice and decide by the third arb if you want to long term him. You'll want to keep in my mind if he's old enough to already by declining by the end of any long term deal.
5/9/2016 7:35 PM (edited)