Indians add 40 homers!

[MinnesotaFats]

Cleveland distancing themselves from the pack in AL Central with Encarcion, automatic 40/115.

Tigers are in sell mode, KC should still be 90 wins, Twins?? Was last year just a disaster or are they a 90 win team like in 15?

[MMANick]

Word around Detroit is we're not selling anymore because we weren't getting enough in return. That's a solid pickup for the Tribe. KC will not get 90 wins. The Tigers are still your competition.

[jjgold]

No guarantees on previous projections or what players did in past seasons

[Bostongambler]

I really wanted the Sox to get Encarcion's bat to replace Ortiz.

[irish1]

No reason the tribe shouldn't win that division. Great pitching and great hitting.

[Bandit]

No reason the tribe shouldn't win that division. Great pitching and great hitting.

Barring injuries they will be a force

[Fieldysnuts44]

Hope they resign Napoli as well,still a chance.He's a big part of that club house,keeps everyone loose.You have to have chemistry as well as talent and I think Nap is a big part of that.They have the pitching wrapped up for a few years,so they should be a contender again next year.Its to bad that we had those injuries to the pitching staff at end of season,that series would have been a lot different. Trevor Bauer is a Bum.

[lakerboy]

200 strikeouts as well. Edwin is a 220 hitter

[unusialsusp5]

200 strikeouts as well. Edwin is a 220 hitter

he's not that bad but doesn't get many hits (703 PA only 158 hits) much lower doubles total that you would want or expect (every one of his seasons weak hitting doubles) suspect that he is older than 33 (certainly looks it) can't run. has been bashing homers but in homer friendly park. expecting his numbers to decline to an average level of .266 27 88 for the next 3 years. not terrible but not worth 20m per. they need napoli for clubhouse and to alternate with this stiff for 1b/dh duties.

[irish1]

200 strikeouts as well. Edwin is a 220 hitter

His career average in 266, He never hit as low as 220.

[cooperman]

Edwin brings a definite presence to that lineup. If the pitching holds up, they will be 95 wins in that division

[stevenash]

I really wanted the Sox to get Encarcion's bat to replace Ortiz.

Sox should have signed Kendrys Morales as DH.
He's a great clubhouse guy, and a professional hitter.

[chico2663]

if seatle signs a 4th or 5th pitcher than I think they will be tough. They needed a lead off hitter in segura. Also the strengthened the bench with by getting more right handed bats. Astros improved by finally getting a catcher. They are bragging about bsn getting sale but playing in that band box ,price is a choker; should they win the division . I see it being htn or seattle as best value on money

[Goat Milk]

Hope they resign Napoli as well,still a chance.He's a big part of that club house,keeps everyone loose.You have to have chemistry as well as talent and I think Nap is a big part of that.They have the pitching wrapped up for a few years,so they should be a contender again next year.Its to bad that we had those injuries to the pitching staff at end of season,that series would have been a lot different. Trevor Bauer is a Bum.

Pretty clear that Napoli sucks. He's 0 for 3 in the world series and is one of the most anti-clutch players in history. Guy swings as hard as he can blindly at every pitch, sucks on defense. Napoli is a loser.

[unusialsusp5]

Pretty clear that Napoli sucks. He's 0 for 3 in the world series and is one of the most anti-clutch players in history. Guy swings as hard as he can blindly at every pitch, sucks on defense. Napoli is a loser.

could have sworn he was on the 2013 red sox team that won the world series.

[RetiredinPunta]

Edwin brings a definite presence to that lineup. If the pitching holds up, they will be 95 wins in that division

If pitching stays healthy they would be 95 wins even without Edwin.

But Edwin is a great Add. He will replace Napoli, who will flop big in 2017.

[Goat Milk]

could have sworn he was on the 2013 red sox team that won the world series.

I forget if he was. If he did that would make him 1/4. Loser. Biggest loser baseball player of all time. Proven. Anti clutch player. What did he hit this year in the postseason? Not even gonna check. He swings and fans on everything.

[unusialsusp5]

I forget if he was. If he did that would make him 1/4. Loser. Biggest loser baseball player of all time. Proven. Anti clutch player. What did he hit this year in the postseason? Not even gonna check. He swings and fans on everything.

he was, but you can't put the blame on him because his team didn't win a couple of world series. not a big fan of him but encarcion isn't much better. another swing for the fences only guy that never tries to stretch a single into a double. lousy clubhouse guy compared to napoli and that matters. hardly the biggest loser baseball player of all time. that could be carl everett.

[t-wizzle]

Encarnacion is an upgrade over Napoli.

[unusialsusp5]

Encarnacion is an upgrade over Napoli.

no doubt that he is. but encarnacion is not worth 20m if money plays into it. he was waiting for boston and new york to call but the phone never rang. somehow they sucked cleveland into this bad contract. good for him, he had no shot of going to the NL. just a DH now. how many other teams had the money. oakland allegedly offered him more. hard to believe that. guy peaked last year. for this money he should be hitting 15 more doubles and 30-35 more hits overall. looking at his year by year stats he's consistently underperformed except for HR's and who knows how many of those were in blowouts. decent 12m player but if were a gm i would never sign him. also think he lopped 2 years off his birth certificate.

[t-wizzle]

no doubt that he is. but encarnacion is not worth 20m if money plays into it. he was waiting for boston and new york to call but the phone never rang. somehow they sucked cleveland into this bad contract. good for him, he had no shot of going to the NL. just a DH now. how many other teams had the money. oakland allegedly offered him more. hard to believe that. guy peaked last year. for this money he should be hitting 15 more doubles and 30-35 more hits overall. looking at his year by year stats he's consistently underperformed except for HR's and who knows how many of those were in blowouts. decent 12m player but if were a gm i would never sign him. also think he lopped 2 years off his birth certificate.

His numbers will decline but it's not a long term deal so it should be good for Cleveland assuming they contend again next year.

[unusialsusp5]

His numbers will decline but it's not a long term deal so it should be good for Cleveland assuming they contend again next year.

it'll be a long 3 years and that option will never be picked up by the club. they're stuck with him as no other club would take him off their hands for that price. this was his lifetime achievement contract and his last one. he's better than napoli but francona would rather have mike there for clubhouse harmony.

[irish1]

Pretty clear that Napoli sucks. He's 0 for 3 in the world series and is one of the most anti-clutch players in history. Guy swings as hard as he can blindly at every pitch, sucks on defense. Napoli is a loser.

The Mets gave Cespedes a ton (110 mil) and he choked in every big spot since joining the team. One game playoff last year against the Giants 0-4 with 2k"s. The year before that he choked in the WS against KC going 3-20, 6K's, no homeruns, 1 RBI and batted .150. In 15 postseason games with the Mets, thats 58 at bats he has 2 HR's and one double. Murphy carried the Mets against the Dodgers and the Cubs, then fizzled in the WS against KC. Cespedes did nothing. So, until he proves otherwise Cespedes is a choker bigger than Napoli. Napoli at least has a WS Ring. Cespedes is getting 28 mil per year, has great regular season stats but has really done nothing but choke in big post season spots for the Mets.

[unusialsusp5]

The Mets gave Cespedes a ton (110 mil) and he choked in every big spot since joining the team. One game playoff last year against the Giants 0-4 with 2k"s. The year before that he choked in the WS against KC going 3-20, 6K's, no homeruns, 1 RBI and batted .150. In 15 postseason games with the Mets, thats 58 at bats he has 2 HR's and one double. Murphy carried the Mets against the Dodgers and the Cubs, then fizzled in the WS against KC. Cespedes did nothing. So, until he proves otherwise Cespedes is a choker bigger than Napoli. Napoli at least has a WS Ring. Cespedes is getting 28 mil per year, has great regular season stats but has really done nothing but choke in big post season spots for the Mets.

you're assuming that teams only care about winning the world series. they don't. they are more interested in having players perform during the regular season to keep them in contention so that fan interest and attendance won't wane. that brings in more revenue than "winning it all" which most of you are pre-occupied with the notion that is all that matters. yes, getting to the playoffs and world series matters and while it's nice to win the financial gain for the club isn't that significant. as a fan you are ingrained with the belief that you have to win it all or the whole season is a waste. not true in any sport. season long revenue far more important to these team owners.

[irish1]

So, if an 87-win AL team that misses the playoffs would generate $100 million dollars on average, an 87-win NL team that makes the playoffs would generate roughly $120 million. That’s a 20 percent profit increase just for making the playoffs, even though it had the same number of wins as the AL team.
Applying the same formula to all five marked points on the graph (87 wins, 91 wins, 96 wins, 100 wins, 105 wins), the results look something like this:

	87 wins	91 wins	96 wins	100 wins	105 wins
Non-Playoff Season	$100 million	$120 million	$150 million	$175 million	$187.5 million
Playoff Season	$120 million	$150 million	$187.5 million	$225 million	$235 million
$ Increase for Playoff Appearance	$20 million	$30 million	$37.5 million	$50 million	$47.5 million
% Increase for Playoff Appearance	20%	25%	25%	28.6%	25.3%

Not a bad financial bonus for achieving a goal that the franchise was trying to reach anyway.
The latter end of the scale is a bit impractical in application, since it is unlikely for a MLB team to win 96 or more games and not reach the postseason — especially with the new playoff system and additional wild-card spots. But it’s not at all uncommon for a team to miss the playoffs with 87 to 91 wins.
The Mariners fell one game shy of an AL wild-card spot this year with 87 wins. If the Mariners win-curve slope is even somewhat similar to the league average, Seattle might have missed out on $20 million in future revenue by one win.
The Rangers missed the playoffs on the last day of the 2013 season with 91 wins, a total that would have been good enough to qualify for postseason play in the National League, but not in the American League. Missing the playoffs meant that $30 million future profits, more or less, went down the drain.
The Dodgers may have spent 2.5 times the amount the Royals did on player salaries, but the Dodgers have that luxury because a 20-25 percent revenue increase in the L.A. market is significantly more than a 20-25 percent increase in the Kansas City market. That’s just the way baseball economics work without a salary cap.
But a 20-25 percent jump in revenue totals are margins any organization would be ecstatic to see.
Marlins owner Jeffery Loria consistently has one of the lowest payrolls, but once or twice a decade he’ll double the payroll, load up on talent for a playoff run, then hold a fire-sale a year later. He knows how enormous the profits are for just making the postseason. After that’s accomplished, its money in the bank coming his way for the next four to five years. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Long story short, it pays off to make in the playoffs. On average, about $20-$30 million worth.

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[irish1]

Playoff or world series appearance increases revenue. So, naturally that is the goal, increase the revenue and value of the Franchise. It's not that complicated.

[unusialsusp5]

Playoff or world series appearance increases revenue. So, naturally that is the goal, increase the revenue and value of the Franchise. It's not that complicated.

playoff or world series appearances does. but the final act of winning it all which is one poster is blaming cespedes or napoli from not helping attaining that goal isn't going to affect the revenue they garnered getting to the 9th inning of a game 7 winning or not. you sign an expensive free agent to help you get to the playoffs and hopefully the world series and while you want to win it you've already gotten the cash win or lose. getting back to encarncion, now content with that contract, will continue his lazy ways of not trying to stretch singles into doubles, pitchers know to not give him much with men on base. i actually feel sorry for cleveland that they stuck themselves with this lemon. will not average a hit a game this year and drive in less than 100.

[chico2663]

Dude cleveland will come back to reality. The reality is twins or tigers winning the central.