Edwin Encarnacion is going through an incredible stretch in his career.
With the Indians setting the world on fire following their record 22 game winning streak, a large chunk of the credit has rightfully gone to their pitching staff, which has been dominant in the second half of the season. Yet again, however, one guy who has somehow gotten lost in the shuffle because of Jose Ramirez’s and Francisco Lindor’s strong all-around play, is the MLB’s resident slugger, Edwin Encarnacion.
I’ll admit it; after a rough April where Encarnacion struck out 35 times in 85 at-bats, and hit .200 with a .696 OPS, a good chunk of the blame for the Indians’ slow, 14-10 start could be directed at Encarnacion, especially after he came over from the Blue Jays and was given a three-year, $60 million contract to try to put the Indians over the World Series hump. While Encarnacion’s .254 average still leaves something to be desired (although it isn’t much lower than his career .265 mark) here we are heading towards the end of September, and Encarnacion has scored 90 runs, hit 36 HR, driven in 96 runs, walked 100 times, and boasts a very strong .377 OBP for the now AL favorite Indians.
Looking at this year’s AL Leaderboards, Encarnacion currently ranks 7th in games played with 147, 8th in OBP, 5th in HR, 7th in RBI, and is 2nd in BB, proving Encarnacion has been worth every penny the Indians gave him this offseason. Yet even in Toronto, I always felt Encarnacion was never given the credit he deserved as one of baseball’s best sluggers, playing under the shadow of the brash Jose Bautista, and AL MVP Josh Donaldson. Yet over the past five seasons, Encarnacion’s numbers have been nothing short of incredible. In 146 games, he has scored 541 runs, hit 229 HR, driven in 646 RBI, has walked 492 times, and has hit .269/.369/.537, good for a .906 OPS. That means that over the past six seasons, Encarnacion has averaged 146 G, 90 runs, 38 HR, 108 RBI, and 82 walks, which to be honest, are superstar numbers.
Encarnacion’s string of dominance over the past six seasons is only extended when looking at where he has ranked amongst AL sluggers over the time frame across a variety of individual stats.
- Twice finished in the top ten in the AL in Offensive WAR (2012 and 2013)
- Three appearances in the top eight amongst AL players in OBP (2012, 2015, 2017)
- From 2012-2015, finished in the top five in the AL in SLG.
- From 2012-2016, finished in the top 10 in the AL in OPS, including the top five every year from 2012-2015
- Never finished below 7th in the AL in HR from 2012-2017
- Ranked in the top ten in the AL in RBI from 2012-2017, including a league-leading 127 in 2016.
- Finished in the top seven in the AL in BB five times, and finished in the top ten in the AL in extra base hits from 2012-2016.
Will Encarnacion ever win an MVP this late in his career? Given his low AVG. and limited defensive abilities, the answer is likely a no. Still, he has been without a doubt one of baseball’s best, must also most underrated hitters over the past six seasons.
