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Washington Nationals Payroll In 2017 + Contracts Going Forward

People can throw stones on Mike Rizzo all they want- but the GM has never lost a trade ever, and he ensured the club received a Starting CF in Adam Eaton to the tune of only $38.4 MIL over the nxxt 5 years – even if it cost a boatload of prospects. This is part to compensate balloon payments on the horizon that are due to both Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. The club is projected to spend around $154 MIL on salary in 2015, but that is without a proven closer. The real question is how far the club will go in money to win in the next 2 seasons before Bryce Harper is a Free Agent?
With the rest of the MLB landscape just obliterating Mike Rizzo for the Adam Eaton trade i will defend him on the caveat that he spends the full amount of available funds saved – in order to take a run at the World Series for the next 2 years while Bryce Harper is still on the club.
At this point. it is a long shot that the DC franchise will be able to retain the 2015 NL MVP’s services as the Nationals already have Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg to historical contracts (both top 20).
Washington sees Jayson Werth finally come off the books after this next year. While he will have earned $126 MIL from 2011 – 2017 in his total contract, the club can’t point to this as the worst deal on the club currently.
Ryan Zimmerman is still owed at least $47 MIL over the next 3 years – and has seen his production slip for the last few years.
The Max Scherzer contract does pay him $210 MIL over 7 years (in which he is now in year 3) – however this is deferred over 14 years, so the club can conduct more flexibility in their contracts for the next few years.
Top 5 Projected Save Leaders For The MLB In 2017

Aroldis Chapman appeared in 31 Games for the Yankees in 2016, holding 20 Saves and a crisp 2l01 ERA and WHIP of .867. This was done in just over 3 months. With the Yankees kickstarting him up from Spring Training, and without the aid of Andrew Miller as a fallback option, I expect the flamethrowing southpaw to have one of his best seasons ever out of the pen in 2017.
What a scene it will be at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW in he District today where Aroldis Chapman and Joe Maddon will reunite to celebrate their 2016 World Series Championship.
The big Lefty Cuban should be the favorite to win the 2017 Saves Title for the entire MLB. It is not that the Yankees will lead the league in wins – heck they may finish 4th in the AL East. I just believe that with the pop gun offense (say for Gary Sanchez) that the victories will all be closely contested.
I highly thought of Kenley Jansen and Craig Kimbrel for this honor as well, however I like their managers to give them the odd day off ans Save Opportunities.
As of today, we have the Cubs nearing the 100 in plateau again, but just like the aforementioned players above, I think Maddon will use several guys to register Saves for Chicago in 2017 – like Wade Davis, Hector Rondon and Carl Edwards JR.
The reigning World Series Champs are also a lot more prone to blow out teams in a weakened National League where 6 clubs may lose 90 Games or more.
For the sake of preserving arms and fatigue, I would also not be surprised to see a few more SVO’s going to Andrew Miller in lieu of Cody Allen for the AL Pennant winners Cleveland.
(RELATED – Top 5 Home Runs Hitters Projected For The MLB in 2017) Read the rest of this entry
Odds To Win The 2016 MLB World Series

The Nationals were 36 – 25 in the games that Denard Span appeared in for the 2015 year. He is going to help the Giants offense as a legitimate leadoff man in 2016 and can play all 3 positions in the Outfield. They have 3 decent starting players beyond the grass, and should be able to fill all 162 games with Belt and Blanco also being on the depth chart out there.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
I absolutely love the Giants Free Agent Signing of Denard Span. This is a club that has extreme depth in all 3 OF positions now, and Span has worked the role of a Leadoff man brilliantly in the last several years.
Yes between he, Hunter Pence and Angel Pagan they have spent time on the sick bay over the last few years, but when you add that Brandon Belt could play LF, or Gregor Blanco who filled in admirably well in 2015, than you see that the roster just became stronger.
It is for these reasons alone I have finally taken the +900 odd off as one of my worst picks on the betsheet. This signing definitely tips the scales back in San Frans favor over the Dodgers.
The 1 – 8 lineup looks nice with Span, Joe Panik, Buster Posey, Hunter Pence, Brandon Belt, Matt Duffy, Brandon Crawford and Angel Pagan all capable MLB Starter. I could see this squad leading the Batting Average in the Majors in the coming year.
While I love the club, the odd at +900 is bang on now. Read the rest of this entry
Kansas City Royals State Of The Union For 2016

Back to Back AL pennants and this years World Series Winners. They are the biggest favorite to win their respective division so far on the board. The KC franchise has most of the core nucleus all heading for Free Agency before the 2018 season. If I were a fan of this club – I would be okay with the team rebuilding after this, but for now to throw all chips in and try to cash in on a chance for a small dynasty. Dayton Moore and the Brass should use any one of their Minor League Players to acquire the next piece or 2 to make that happen in 2016 and 2017.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
The Royals are back to back AL Pennant winners and the reigning World Series Champions right now. Furthermore, they are playing in the most winnable Division in the Majors right now.
Kansas City were the 1st real small market club to win the World Series since the 2003 Marlins club took home the Fall Classic that year.
Just like the 2014 winter, the club will sustain losses between the end of the year to Spring Training the following year.
The door is not closed on Alex Gordon yet, however I don’t think it is in the clubs best interest to pay a 9 figure salary to a guy who is already 30.
KC has already seen Ben Zobrist sign with the Cubs, Johnny Cueto with the Giants, and Greg Holland will not pitch at all in the 2016 season with Tommy John Surgery recovery, and certainly not for the Royals.
Dayton Moore has done a decent job acquiring talent though. The team resigned Starter Chris Young, and they added one time Royals Closer Joakim Soria.
The window is not just for 2016 – as the club only stands to lose back up Catcher Drew Butera following next year, but also for 2017. Read the rest of this entry
Why The Royals Can’t Sit Back After 2014: KC State Of The Union For 2015

Kansas City finally lived up to their expectations, and far exceeded beyond that, being just one swing away from calling themselves World Championships. With the success the team had, it also creates pay raises, roster turnover, and tough decisions from the brass on who to replace the outgoing cast. Dayton Moore must be aggressive with some of the changes, and realize this core group of players have about a 2 – 3 year window to win before everyone becomes too expensive. The time to strike is still now!
Why The Royals Can’t Sit Back After 2014 AL Pennant
Jordan Gluck (Featured Writer): Follow @jgluck777
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First congrats to the San Fransisco Giants organization for winning a 3rd championship in 5 years!
Now for the losers who captured Americas heart, and why the Royals can’t sit back and do nothing all offseason.
Frequently after a team wins a championship (for almost any sport) and has that breakthrough season that team tends to try and retain its team from last year while making no additions.
Save for LeBrons Miami heat we haven’t had a team repeat in any sport since the 2004 Patriots and not in baseball since the 2000 Yankees.
Lets not forget that while the Royals did eventually get to game 7 of the World Series they barely got the wild card clinching the spot a couple games above the Mariners and winning that game late.
Here are recent examples of Championship teams who really made very few additions and flopped or performed less than expected the next year.
The 2013 Red Sox who basically retained the same team and suffered from injuries and substandard performance from players like Clay Buchholz and David Ortiz.
The biggest example might be the 2010 and 2012 San Francisco Giants who just retained their teams while making no additions and ended up making frantic moves such as trading for Carlos Beltran at the deadline to fill the holes.
They missed the 2011 and 2013 postseasons. When they made changes such as trading for Hunter Pence and signing Mike Morse they ended up winning it all again. Read the rest of this entry
Based On The World Series Odds Today – Bet The Royals To Win
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Follow MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
We said it before the World Series started, if you were going to bet KC for the “Fall Classic” wait until after Game 1, when a loss to Madison Bumgarner was well within the realm.
The Royals jumped from a -120 favorite, to a +170 underdog on the completion of last night’s game. Clearly the website is working out formula’s without human’s listing the odds before this series began.
It still baffles me how the Giants weren’t favored to win this series to begin with.
Having said this, the time to bet the American League Champions is right now if you were going to bet them at all. I still believe the Giants will win the series, however the odd has jumped so far in their favor, it doesn’t have enough value to throw some cabbage down on.
Tonight’s matchup (Jake Peavy +106 @ Yordano Ventura -116) favors Kansas City slightly. But it is more than that.
The young flamethrowing rookie (Ventura) has great hit and miss stuff, and has never faced the Giants lineup, this ultimately is in Ned Yost squad’s favor.
Peavy on the other hand, spent numerous years and season series opposing the Royals as a member of the Chicago White Sox formerly. He has struggled mightily, owning a 5 – 7 record, with a 4.97 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 14 game starts against Kansas City lifetime.
Billy Butler has had a field day on the RHP. Hitting .500 with 3 HRs for his career versus the former Red Sox champ. Read the rest of this entry
Odds To Win The 2014 MLB World Series (Kansas City Vs San Francisco) + Prediction Time

Kansas City is making the most of their 1st playoff appearance since winning the World Series in 1985. The club has won 8 straight games over 3 series, and have shown they have power in their lumber, homering in most of their games. They have a slight advantage with their Relief Core, and must amp up their speed game again versus the Giants in order to win the 2014 Fall Classic. KC has home field advantage with the AL having won the ALL – Star Game. I personally think this is a hinderance, based on the way the team plays on the road. Whatever I feel, the oddsmakers have listed them as the Favorite.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
I awoke this morning to a text stating that the Giants were the longshots in the MLB World Series this year at +100 when I placed my wager.
Kansas City was a -120 Favorite in the early morning Friday.
I exclaimed ‘yes’ because I was hoping for a nice odd for the NLCS Champs.
Chuck Booth and I stand to win $1477.50 on KC to win the World Series based on a $20 (50/1 Bet) and a $6 (80/1 Bet).
San Francisco was also the subject of my 1st bet on the Fall Classic to start the year. It was a 25/1 Odd back in January of this year, and we threw down $14 each.
Now since we could win $1477 on the Royals, and just $389 on the Giants, came the hedge bet for $500 on SF at Even money.
So we can win $1389.00 each on the Giants, and now $1477 still on KC.
The difference being, that we only had to wager $25 aggregate on the ALCS Champs.
The bet assures us of over $1000 each profit for the year.
Already, since the morning line, the odds have shifted to SF -105, to KC -115. I am not surprised, as the Sharps have spoken.
MLB Futures (Regular Season Prop Specials): Gambling 101

Get set for another season of throwing some cash around when it comes to baseball. MLB Reports will have you ready with what we are looking at as well.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
We all love to see if we can be a good gambler right?
Of course some of it is just bragging rights with our buddies, and of course no one is allowed to gamble in the USA, unless you are living in a state that allows it either.
So, whether you want to just play for winning amongst friends, or actually want to risk some sheckels, here are some fun specials to wager on in 2014 Read the rest of this entry
Top 5 Holds Leaders In MLB 2014
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
It is the secondary stat category to Saves for Relievers, but it most cases, the guys pulling down innings in the last few frames play just as an important part of game – if not more.
Last year, two Tampa Bay Rays were in the top 5 – with Jake McGee sitting in 5th with 26 – while Joel Peralta was the clubhouse leader for the MLB at 41.
The guys have to be at the forefront for the 2014 race as well.
Lets just see who we the MLB Reports take for Holds Leaders in 2014. Read the rest of this entry
Top 5 Saves Leaders In MLB 2014
Coffee Is For Closers Only – “Always Be Closing! _(Profanity Laced Tirade Here)
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
The Closers job in the MLB is a rough negotiation. Saving games does not necessarily quantify an awesome reliever or not, but the stat category still remains both played up for fantasy, and something to reference.
For the tops in most of the leagues in 2014, you must have look towards the top clubs 1st.
In Oakland, I think Jim Johnson and Luke Gregerson will take turns saving contests. The same thing may happen in Los Angeles – where Brian Wilson and Kenley Jansen may also both see time as the clubs Closer. Read the rest of this entry
“Stoking The Fire” Week 3: Kansas City Royals State Of The Union 2014 Part 1

James Shields turned in a workman like effort for the Royals (13 – 9, with a 3.15 ERA – AL leading 228.2 IP and 34 Game Starts) – only to have received little run support. With the Trade having going down seemingly to correct each other main ailments with the Rays needing offense and the Royals needing defense. It has worked for both teams. 2014 becomes the most pivotal year in the last 3 decades for the franchise – as it is “Big Game” James’ last year under contract. With them trading away Wil Myers for his services, the team needs to capitalize on this year. Ultimately the franchise should spend any amount of $$$ necessary in 2014 to compete with the big boys of the AL. With so many of their own core young players due to start receiving salaries increases, this next year has to be the time to go for it!!
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twiter Follow @mlbreports
I am officially calling out the Royals Management and ownership to buck up again for the 2014 season. If ever there was a year to spend the money it is now!
You have James Shields for one more year, and all of your core young players like Billy Butler, Eric Hosmer, Luke Hochevar and Mike Moustakas are heading for some payraises in the near future for Arbitration.
Wade Davis also will see his money bumped in 2015.
For all of the Rosters, Depth Charts, State of the Unions and Salaries Posts that we do, please visit our dedicated page link here.
The time to win is now!
Shields first inning as a Royal
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