In Cleveland, Terry Pluto noted it took a trip to the '16 World Series "combined with a 22-game winning streak for the Indians to draw 2 million fans for the first time in 10 years." That includes a "summer with zero rainouts and mild weather in April and September." Their season tickets for '18 are "approaching 13,000." That is "up from 12,600" at the start of the season. The Indians have a "very loyal and knowledgeable core group of fans." But the "casual fan base is very fragile." No matter "what anyone says, this is not a baseball town." It is "a football town." Pluto wondered if the Indians will "continue their promising" '18 ticket sales, or if a loss to the Yankees in the ALDS will slow that down" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 10/15).
SCALING BACK: In Detroit, Bill Shea noted the Tigers are "likely to enter" next season with between $141-157M "committed to player salaries -- a payroll decrease" of up to 30% versus this past season's $200M in roster spending. The decline "could be even sharper if more veteran talent is shed this off-season as part of the team's pivot to rebuilding via less costly, younger talent developed in-house." The Tigers have "just five major leaguers under long-term contract:" 1B Miguel Cabrera, 2B Ian Kinsler, DH Victor Martinez, and Ps Jordan Zimmerman and Anibal Sanchez. Collectively, they are due $99M next season, but "some of the five may not be on the roster" in '18 (CRAINSDETROIT.com, 10/13).
MIDDLE OF THE PACK: In Seattle, Larry Stone noted the Mariners opened the '17 season with a reported payroll of $154M, their "highest ever, which put them in the middle of the pack in MLB." Mariners Chair & CEO John Stanton said that they are "still a few weeks away from setting next year's payroll, but 'there’s room for growth.'" Stanton also said that he did not feel there was a "need to make a big signing to show fans the team was serious in its commitment." Stone also noted the Mariners' farm system "remains in the lower echelon of MLB by almost everyone's estimation." But it is "too early" in Exec VP & GM/Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto’s tenure to "expect him to have fully restocked the mostly empty shelves he was left with" (SEATTLE TIMES, 10/12).
