Michael A. Taylor and the Washington Nationals went to an arbitration hearing over a difference of $250,000, and the arbiters sided with the team on Friday, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

Taylor, a 27-year-old outfielder, was asking for a $3.5 million salary for 2019. The Nationals offered $3.25 million and, since they couldn’t settle on a salary since exchanging those figures in early January, they met in an arbitration hearing in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Thursday. That gave Taylor and the Nationals a chance to state their case in front of three neutral arbiters, and Taylor was on the losing end of their resulting decision. Taylor is in his second year of arbitration eligibility and made $2.525 million last season.

Thursday was the first day of arbitration hearings — with Taylor going against the Nationals, and shortstop Carlos Correa clashing with the Houston Astros — and there are 13 more expected across the next two weeks. One of those will be for Nationals reliever Kyle Barraclough, who is asking for $2 million while the Nationals are offering $1.725 million. Washington acquired Barraclough in an October trade, sending $1 million of international slot money to the Miami Marlins, and the 28-year-old figures to be a roving piece in the Nationals’ bullpen this season.

Taylor’s role is similarly undefined, which is likely why he ended up in an arbitration case with the Nationals. If $250,000 seems like a negligible amount to go to a hearing over — considering the Nationals’ 2019 payroll is projected to be just under $200 million — it’s because it is. That could be a signal of discontent between a player and the organization, as the Nationals typically prefer to avoid arbitration hearings. The player’s representation argues why he is worth a certain salary. The team counters and, in doing so, has to point out and closely examine a player’s flaws while that player sits in the room. There is a reason these hearings are known to strain relationships. The last time the Nationals went to an arbitration hearing was with reliever Jerry Blevins in February 2015. Blevins won and was traded before the season began.

Now, with the start of spring training less than two weeks away, Taylor’s salary is clear, but his future with the Nationals is not. He struggled at the plate at the end of last season, hitting .122 in August and .200 in September.

Jesse.dougherty@washpost.com

Twitter.com/dougherty_jesse