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2017 MLB Offseason: 5 Most Likely Landing Spots For Free Agent First Baseman Edwin Encarnacion

By Jason Fletcher

From the archive: published Nov 6, 2016, 9 years ago. Details may have changed since.

For the second season in a row, the Toronto Blue Jays’ season ended in the American League Championship Series as they were upended by the Cleveland Indians in five games. General manager Ross Atkins now faces some difficult decisions heading into the 2017 offseason.

Two of the biggest cogs in the middle of the Blue Jays’ order, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, are both free agents and re-signing both guys could be tricky for the team. For one, Encarnacion will turn 34 in January and Bautista just turned 36 in October. The goal for the Blue Jays should be to re-sign both guys on short-term deals, but that may not be possible depending on the market demand.

Encarnacion is an interesting case especially because he’s coming off of yet another dominant season where he led the American League with 127 RBIs. In addition, Edwin hit 0.263 with a 0.357 OBP and hit 42 home runs, but it’s nearly impossible to expect him to be able to remain at that level for more than another year or two which is what makes his situation so difficult for Atkins.

Let’s take a look at the five teams that could be most likely to take a chance on the 34-year-old slugger.

Texas Rangers

The Rangers’ starting first baseman, Prince Fielder, was forced to retire last season after undergoing career-ending neck surgery. The team used a platoon of Mitch Moreland and Ryan Rua for most of the second-half of the season, but inserting a guy like Encarnacion could bring some much-needed power to the middle of the Rangers’ lineup.

Houston Astros

The Astros had a disappointing 2016 season that saw them miss the playoffs after entering the season as favorites in the AL West. Aside from the trio of Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, and George Springer, the Astros really struggled offensively and could use a big power bat like Edwin Encarnacion. He would be a considerable upgrade over Marwin Gonzalez and Tyler White.

Boston Red Sox

David Ortiz is entering retirement and the Red Sox desperately need to replace his bat in the lineup. While Hanley Ramirez is entrenched as the Red Sox starting first baseman, Encarnacion takes Ortiz’s spot as the everyday designated hitter. It would help to prolong Edwin’s career by not having to play the field every day while still giving the Red Sox a viable replacement for Ortiz.

New York Yankees

Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez have both retired while it sounds like Brian McCann could very well be traded this offseason. The Yankees seem to have found one replacement in the middle of the order in Gary Sanchez, but they need one or two more power bats to field a scary lineup. Encarnacion would certainly fit the bill and make the Yankees threats in the AL East

Toronto Blue Jays

If the Blue Jays aren’t able to re-sign Encarnacion, I have no idea how they would be able to replace his bat in the lineup. Sure, Josh Donaldson would still be there along with Troy Tulowitzki, Devon Travis, and Russell Martin, but none of those guys are true sluggers who routinely drive in runs, aside from Donaldson. The Toronto Blue Jays would take a massive step back next season if they don’t re-sign Edwin Encarnacion.

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