Toronto Blue Jays Edwin Encarnacion watches the ball fly into the stands after hitting a walk off three run homer as the Jays defeat the Baltimore Orioles 5-2 in an American League wild card game at Rogers Centre on Oct 4 2016.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
While it is evident the Cleveland Indians are serious about returning to the post-season in 2017 with the reported signing of Edwin Encarnacion, you have to wonder about the motives of the Toronto Blue Jays moving forward.
Is the American League East outfit being thrifty with its so far low-key approach in the free-agent market? Or are team president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins being ultra-cautious and waiting for just the right moment to strike?
There is still plenty of time before the start of the 2017 Major League Baseball season for the Blue Jays to address the many needs they have to fill if they hope to remain a major force in the upscale American League East.
But until some of that heavy lifting starts to take place, the Blue Jays fan base will continue to openly fret about just what the heck is going on.
While A.L. East rivals like the Boston Red Sox (trading for lefty ace Chris Sale) and New York Yankees (signing flame-throwing reliever Aroldis Chapman and heavy-hitting designated hitter Matt Holliday on free-agent deals) have busied themselves strengthening their rosters, the Blue Jays have been relatively quiet.
The club's mystifying off-season took another body blow on Thursday night when word started to filter out that Encarnacion, the Blue Jays' popular slugger, had signed a free-agent deal with the Indians, who came within a game of winning the World Series this season.
The deal reportedly is for three years and $60-million and includes a club option for 2020 for another $20-million.
The Indians could also terminate the contract at that time for $5-million, bringing the total guaranteed value of the deal to $65-million, making it the largest free-agent contract in Cleveland history.
The deal will not be official until Encarnacion has undergone a physical, which is not expected until early 2017. Until then the Blue Jays will not comment on the development.
Toronto will receive a first-round draft pick in 2017 in compensation for losing Encarnacion.
It was not a surprise to learn that Encarnacion is moving on. In fact, it was expected after the Blue Jays clearly indicated they were moving in a different direction when they signed Kendrys Morales to a three-year, $33-million contract on Nov. 11, three days into the beginning of the free agency free-for-all.
In their only other notable off-season move, the Blue Jays signed Steve Pearce to a two-year, $12.5-million deal. A utility infielder and outfielder, Pearce will probably spend most of his time at first base.
The Blue Jays had reportedly offered Encarnacion a four-year deal worth $80-million to remain a Blue Jay once the 2016 MLB season concluded. But they moved swiftly on Morales when Encarnacion, who had earned the right to see what was available on the open market, didn't immediately jump at the offer.
Morales, who will fill Encarnacion's primary role in Toronto as the team's DH, is a decent hitter in his own right – he batted .263 with 30 home runs and 93 runs-batted-in for Kansas City in 2016.
Morales is also a switch-hitter, which will add to his value with the Blue Jays, whose batting lineup this past season was predominantly from the right side.
But Morales is not in Encarnacion's league, either offensively or defensively.
Encarnacion slugged 42 home runs this past season and three more in the post-season – none bigger than the three-run blast in the 11th inning that delivered a 5-2 win over Baltimore in the A.L. wild card game.
In seven full seasons with the Blue Jays, Encarnacion was incredibly consistent, belting out 231 home runs. That's the third-highest MLB total over that time frame.
Free-agent Jose Bautista, whose run in Toronto is also likely over, leads the way with 249 home runs.
With Encarnacion moving on, likely soon to be followed by Bautista, and the free-agent status of Michael Saunders still up in the air, the Blue Jays are thin in several areas.
Atkins has stated that the No. 1 priority is to get another proven outfielder, hopefully one who can hit for power to try to offset the loss in production with the departure of Encarnacion and Bautista.
There is still a chance that Bautista could re-sign with the Blue Jays after rejecting their $17.2-million qualifying offer, but the right fielder is looking for something with a little more term.
The Toronto bullpen also needs to be addressed after losing Brett Cecil. The team's most dependable left-handed arm out of the pen, Cecil is moving on after signing a four-year, $30.5-million contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.