Will the Edwin Encarnacion Sweepstakes Conclude at the Winter Meetings?

Back on November 10th, Edwin Encarnacion’s agent Paul Kinzer forecasted “We could have something done soon. At worst, by the Winter Meetings.”

True to Kinzer’s word, the Edwin Encarnacion sweepstakes may in fact reach their conclusion this week in Washington, DC.

Now that Major League Baseball has settled on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement and the luxury tax threshold determined, it will surely be full speed ahead when it comes to finding a home for MLB’s biggest remaining free agents.

That of course includes Edwin Encarnacion; and he could be on the cusp of inking a new deal in the coming days, courtesy of a report from Joel Sherman:

Encarnacion's agt Paul Kinzer said talks have intensified since CBA agreed upon, says likely deal gets done at Winter Meetings.

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 4, 2016

Despite going out and Kendrys Morales, the Toronto Blue Jays have never officially ruled themselves out on bringing back Edwin Encarnacion. And with his market shrinking with each subsequent signing of 1B/DH types, Encarnacion’s list of suitors seems to be shrinking.

Suddenly, that reported four year/$80 million deal from the Blue Jays doesn’t seem so bad, and it wouldn’t entirely surprise me if Encarnacion’s camp circles back to this offer.

Although all has been quiet on the Red Sox/Encarnacion front, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Boston emerges as a late player for Encarnacion’s services. Despite the reports emerging from Boston about them having little-to-no interest in Edwin, it just makes too much sense for them.

With the Houston Astros seemingly ruled out – and for a while there, the odds-on favourites to land Encarnacion – the pool of potential landing spots has lessened by one more.

Don’t count the Texas Rangers out, either. They’ve been relatively quiet on the Edwin Encarnacion front and are another team in need of a 1B/DH hitter for the foreseeable future.

The one team which has been “in” on Edwin Encarnacion since the very beginning has been none other than the Toronto Blue Jays, which adds an additional layer of intrigue to a possible reunion between the Jays and Encarnacion.