It’s easy to look at the Cleveland Indians and see an American League pennant contender for 2017. Mike Napoli and Rajai Davis are their only significant outgoing free agents, and the latter could easily be replaced by a healthy Michael Brantley. Their postseason gambit to put a massive workload on Corey Kluber and three relievers won’t be necessary once Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar return, and a pennant run might very well open the coffers for a franchise that has never opened a season with a payroll over $100 million.
But the White Sox should not cower in fear of the Cleveland juggernaut and cede that their avenue to playoff contention has been sealed off for the foreseeable future.