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Pitching in San Francisco’s AT&T Park should help Mark Melancon remain one of the best closers in the game. Photo Credit: Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire

If you need further proof that baseball owners are changing the way they do business, just look at how many players are forced to sign short-term contracts these days. Carlos Gomez, who just a couple of years ago was garnering big time interest in Fantasy drafts, decided to stay with the Rangers on a one-year, $11.5 million contract. I’ll bet that Matt Wieters never thought he’d have to settle for a two-year, $21 million contract with the Nationals.

In order to get a truly lucrative baseball contract these days, like that old commercial used to say, you have to earn it. Let’s take a look at some of the players who did earn it and were able to sign large offseason deals with new teams. Will they be able to live up to the value of their contract, and more importantly, will they live up to their Fantasy Baseball value?

Ian Desmond, 1B, Colorado Rockies

Five-year contract worth $70 million

Desmond, the former Nationals shortstop, has an interesting history when it comes to contract negotiations. Having previously turned down offers of $107 million for seven seasons, and a one-year qualifying offer of just under $15 million from the Nats, he seemed to crumble under the pressure of playing for a contract, and slumped for most of the 2015 season. With nowhere else to go, he humbly accepted an $8 million, one-year deal from the Rangers for the 2016 season. Desmond learned to play the outfield, and this time, he delivered at the plate. Based on his bounce-back campaign, Desmond signed a lucrative deal with the Rockies and gets to play half his games in hitter-friendly Coors Field. Although he’s going to have to learn to play another new position as the Rockies first baseman, this is a move that should enhance his Fantasy value. In 95 career at-bats at Coors Field, Desmond has posted a slash line of .379/.406/.611. He also matured a bit at the plate last season. Desmond showed a bit more discipline at the plate, and he chased fewer pitches outside of the strike zone. On average, he’s hit between 20 to 25 home runs per season throughout his career. Yes, he’ll get a Colorado bump, but with a 50.4 career ground ball rate, don’t expect him to automatically become a perennial 30-plus home-run-type slugger. He should have another very productive season, with a batting average again in the .285 range. At first glance, that may seem low, but for a guy who has a .267 career average, it represents a nice bump up. Roster resource expects him to bat fifth in the Rockies order, and if that’s the case, his stolen base totals could take a hit.

Edwin Encarnacion, 1B/DH, Cleveland Indians

Three-year contract worth $60 million

Some will theorize that the uptick in Encarnacion’s 2016 stats were the result of him being more focused as he was playing for a new contract. He tied his career high in home runs (42), and posted career bests in HR/FB rate (21.5), runs (99) and RBI (127) in 2016. Although he can be streaky at times, Encarnacion has averaged 38 home runs and 110 RBI over the past five years.  Encarnacion did leave a very good hitters park in Toronto’s Rogers Centre, but he did choose a good new ballpark to conduct his business in.  Although lefty sluggers do slightly better at Cleveland’s Progressive Field, (Encarnacion bats right-handed), the venue was the fifth-friendliest park for home run hitters in 2016. There are some concerns regarding the 34-year-old veteran. Despite a great 2016 season, some of his statistics are trending in the wrong direction. Encarnacion’s contact rate decreased for the fourth consecutive season, his strikeout rate was his highest since his rookie season, and too much of his roto category production reflected career highs. Yes, Encarnacion’s Fantasy stats may regress a bit this season, but I project that he still has plenty left in the tank.

Dexter Fowler, OF, St. Louis Cardinals

Five-year contract worth $82.5 million

Fowler took us by surprise last season when he agreed to a one-year deal with the Cubs. It looked like he was all set to play for the Orioles, but with the Cubbies winning a championship and Fowler putting up some very good Fantasy numbers, I’d say he made the right choice. Despite being limited by a month-long stint on the DL due to a hamstring injury, Fowler posted double-digit home run and stolen base totals for the fourth time in five seasons. Although Wrigley Field is a better hitter’s park than St. Louis’ Busch Stadium, Fowler actually had a better road OPS (.840), compared to his home OPS (.759) last season, and he shouldn’t face too much regression from his change of scenery. Fowler, who has posted good OBP stats throughout his career, had a career-high 14.3 walk rate last season, and is expected to bat leadoff for the Cardinals this season. That should allow him to help Fantasy owners in the important, but often neglected, runs category once again this season. As you can see from my projections for Fowler’s 2017 season, I believe that he’ll continue to provide Fantasy managers with similar type of speed and power numbers that they’ve been accustomed to getting from him.

Mark Melancon, RP, San Francisco Giants

Four-year contract worth $62 million

If there is one Fantasy player who should enjoy long-term benefits based on his new home, it’s Melancon. He’s already been one of baseball’s top closers, recording the most saves (131) over the past three seasons, but moving to San Francisco should help him extend his dominance. Melancon is able to get the job done without the use of the typical blazing fastball and astronomical strikeout rate that we’ve come to expect from elite closers. He sometimes gets overlooked in drafts because he doesn’t throw an extreme heater. To illustrate, in a recent 15-team mock draft I participated in, Kenley Jansen was the first closer taken, and he was chosen in the fifth round.  Melancon, on the other hand, was picked in the eighth round. Melancon has lost a little bit of the bite that he had on his fastball over the past few years, but that’s OK because his cutter, which induces weak contact, has become an effective go to pitch. The fact that he’ll be pitching for a competitive team with his home games being played in the pitcher-friendly confines of San Francisco’s AT&T Park should help him remain one of baseball’s top closers for the next few seasons.

Kendrys Morales, DH, Toronto Blue Jays

Three-year contract worth $33 million.

By today’s standards, Morales didn’t sign a huge contract, but based on the fact that he will almost exclusively be used as a designated hitter, the fact that he was able to snag a three-year deal is pretty impressive. Morales is a switch hitter, and although he’s been somewhat inconsistent across his career, he is a good contact hitter who has excellent power from both sides of the plate. With a .285/.348/.474 slash line at Kansas City’s Kaufman Stadium, Morales has made the most of his time playing for the Royals. At first glance, it doesn’t look like Morales will get much of a bump up from playing at Toronto’s Rogers Centre. His career slash line of .276/.330/.438 when playing there isn’t too far off from his overall career numbers. However, Rogers Centre ranked sixth in runs scored for 2016, and playing half his games there should help him for the long haul.

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