Toronto Blue Jays fans are no doubt anxious about the future of free agent Edwin Encarnacion, but they might not have to wait much longer for his decision, according to his agent.
Paul Kinzer joined The Jeff Blair Show on Sportsnet 590 The Fan Thursday and said the slugger could quickly decide where he’ll sign, possibly even before the start of baseball’s winter meetings, which begin on Dec. 5.
“With Edwin, it could happen soon,” Kinzer said. “He’s not one to stretch it out. The worst case would be the winter meetings but I think we could possibly have something done before then.”
Encarnacion, who’s one of the premier hitters on the free agent market, is among several key Blue Jays free agents, including Jose Bautista, Michael Saunders and Brett Cecil.
Here are some other tidbits from Blair’s interview with Kinzer.
WHERE DO THINGS STAND WITH THE BLUE JAYS?
Kinzer said that he and Encarnacion speak often with Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins despite not agreeing on an initial contract offer.
“We have a pretty good relationship. There’s no animosity,” says Kinzer. “They did make us an offer and it wasn’t quite where we wanted to be. We’ve spoken to some other teams, but Edwin’s made it pretty clear how much he loves Toronto, not only with his words but his actions. That’s his first choice.
“We know they have a roster to put together,” he added. “They want to continue to be competitive. Edwin’s waited a long time for this opportunity. We tried to get something done in spring training (with the Blue Jays). It didn’t work out. At this point he’s waited his whole career to see what the market would be.”
WHAT’S THE MARKET BEEN LIKE?
Kinzer says Encarnacion’s narrowed his list to a small number of teams and acknowledges the lack of aggressive interest from the Boston Red Sox was surprising.
“There has been a couple of curves. Boston’s been pretty vocal that they’re going to approach it a different way … but there has been some teams that we didn’t expect to be in, who are.”
WHAT IS ENCARNACION LOOKING FOR?
Beyond an appropriate contract, Encarnacion wants to win.
“He wants it to be a team that’s competing for a championship,” said Kinzer, adding that the 33-year-old slugger is primarily speaking to teams that are in win-now mode, not clubs that are “two-years away.”
Encarnacion also wants comfort.
“He’s not a flashy guy. He’s very much about comfort and he very much wants it to be a city where he knows he and his family will be comfortable. He’s not going to go just for the highest dollar.”
FIRST BASE, FIRST
Encarnacion should be looked at as a first baseman, not just a designated hitter, says the agent.
“The DH-only tag is definitely off of him,” Kinzer said. “He proved this year that he could handle it on an everyday basis. “
Encarnacion appeared in 75 games (636.1 innings) at first last season, a tick above the 59 games (481.1 innings) in 2015.
