I need some assistance with understanding money in this game.

I'm not all that aware of how money works in baseball. My first problem is related to contracts. For example, Jerad Eickhoff, one of my pitchers on the phillies, has a salary of $507,500. If I hit "release player" the game tells me that $429,182 will be added to my player expenses. My first question is where does that number come from? the next question is will i then be out 507k plus the 429k?

My next problem is regarding profit. My owner goal is to increase profit to 17 million. my current projected balance is 137K... not even close. What are some ways to increase my profit? Any help is greatly appreciated.