With the Royals raking in revenues this October, they need to increase payroll in 2015

The Royals are making an amazing run this October, which has been fun for Kansas City, but also quite lucrative to the team's bottom line. Hey, all those $25 parking lot fees are going somewhere! The Star's Sam Mellinger takes a look at how the increased revenues from this October will affect next year's payroll.

They made seven figures for the American League Wild Card Game at Kauffman Stadium and seven figures for the American League Division Series game, according to club sources, and they will make another seven figures for Monday’s game three of the American League Championship Series. More ALCS games, possibly World Series games, would mean even more money.

That ain't nothing, we're talking millions of dollars. REAL MECHE MONEY. How much can we expect the Royals to add in, Sam?

The formula is complicated, and the payouts are different for a game one than they’d be for potential game sevens (teams get a bigger chunk in the later-round games), but clubs can sometimes bank $12 million to $15 million for a playoff run that includes the maximum number of games in each series.

Mellinger goes on to add that this doesn't even factor in the skyrocketing value of the franchise, should David Glass ever want to sell.

The Royals should also expect much better season ticket sales next year.

The Royals drew 1,956,482 fans this year, and internally they are expecting 2.1 million or more through the turnstiles next year.

The Royals average ticket price was $25 last year, and we can certainly expect that to go up. If we estimate ticket prices go up to say an average of $30, with 150,000 more fans coming through the turnstiles, the Royals can conservatively count on an additional $4.5 million in revenue.

The Royals were also huge winners in TV ratings, but are unfortunately locked into a terrible TV deal that pays them less than $20 million a year. Mellinger says there may be a chance to re-negotiate that deal, but don't expect greater revenues from that any time soon.

Royals merchandise has also been an extremely hot seller, but any revenues from that are split evenly among all 30 teams, unless it comes from the Official Royals Team store (which by the way, shouldn't they set one up on the Plaza or in the Power and Light District about now?)

So with an additional $10-15 million this October, and an additional $4-6 million from increased attendance next year, the Royals should definitely increase their club-record $92 million payroll from this year. Here is a look at their salary commitments for 2015. The Royals are committed to about $83 million in salary obligations next year. James Shields is a free agent and the Royals are considering making a run at him. The Royals have holes to fill in right-field and designated hitter if they allow Nori Aoki and Billy Butler to walk. Increasing payroll past $100 million, even up to $110 million would make sense to retain the current club and add some significant pieces to improve this ballclub.

David Glass said he is "obsessed with winning." Now is his time to put his money where his mouth is.