Could Blue Jays Lose Encarnacion For Remainder of Season?

Sept 3, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman

(10) celebrates with third baseman

(13) after hitting a solo home run during the eighth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

When we discussed Edwin Encarnacion’s wrist injury a few days ago, I made the following bold statement:

"Encarnacion is not expected to miss any significant amount of time, but given the Blue Jays recent success in being decidedly Bill Belichick-esqe in regards to being upfront on severity of injuries (ahem, Jose Bautista, ahem, Colby Rasmus), we’ll wait until we see EE step back on the field."

Now, I’m not quite on par with Nostradamus quite yet, but it’s beginning to look like I may at least have a knack for reading the situation fairly well.

According to a tweet from Mike Wilner, it appears that the Blue Jays manager John Gibbons stated that Encarnacion is still day-to-day and that there is a possibility that Toronto may choose to shut him down for what little remains of the season. Ben Nicholson-Smith elaborated a bit on that status, stating that Encarnacion is still unable to hit off a tee due to the pain.

With little to no improvement in the wrist since injuring on Saturday against the Twins, and only 17 games remaining after tonight’s contest with the Los Angeles Angels, there is precious little time for Encarnacion to put this behind him. However, the ultimate decision may be out of his hands, as the Blue Jays may simply decide to shut him down, sitting him next to Jose Bautista, Brandon Morrow, Josh Johnson, Melky Cabrera, Maicer Izturis, and possibly Colby Rasmus.

If Encarnacion’s season were to end today, it would not be a total loss. The first baseman has put together another strong campaign, hitting .276 on the season with 36 home runs, 104 RBI, and a .917 OPS. The season stats are remarkably similar to his 2012 break-out, when Encarnacion received MVP consideration for a .280 average, a .941 OPS, 42 home runs, and 110 RBI.

That huge season lead to a 3-year, $27 million extension with the Blue Jays, that includes a $10 million option for 2016. That deal has turned into a very friendly contract for Toronto, very friendly indeed.