EE IS AN INDIAN

The biggest free agent hitter of the season has found a home.

Edwin Encarnacion is now an Indian after agreeing to a three year deal for $60 million (the fourth year of the deal includes a club option for $25 million, though it seems unlikely that at age 37 EE will have that option picked up). He made that choice after rejecting a 4-year, $80 million deal from the Blue Jays. Why? A few thoughts.

Edwin didn’t want to play on the West Coast which would be too far from his family.

Edwin wanted to play on a winning team, and the Indians certainly qualify in that regard.

Third, as Ken Rosenthal pointed out on Twitter, Edwin didn’t really lose $20 million in guaranteed money. Why? Because of the tax differences between the United States and Canada. The top tax bracket in the US is 39.6 percent and President Elect Donald Trump has vowed to lower that mark (there is also some offset options for state taxes for players to lower that amount). In Canada, specifically Ontario, federal and provincial tax comes in at 53.53 percent, much higher than the US total.

As for what the Indians are getting...

Encarnacion turns 34 in January.

Over the last five seasons he’s hit at least 34 homers with 98 RBI. EE is the only man in baseball who has done that. No one else has done it four times in the last five years.

The last five years...

EE is second in homers with 193 (Chris Davis has 197).

EE is second in runs batted in with 550 (Miguel Cabrera has 569).

EE is fourth in slugging percentage at .544 (Cabrera .574).

EE is 6th in OPS with a .912 mark (Cabrera .980).

The past five years an average EE season has been .272-39-110-90-5 with a .912 OPS.

His age is creeping up, but the park in Cleveland is actually a slightly better offensive environment than Toronto, but he should still be one of the better power hitters in baseball in 2017.

Finally, that top-6 in the lineup next year looks pretty banging for the Indians, doesn’t it? Something like:

Jason Kipnis
Francisco Lindor
Michael Brantley (fingers crossed)
Encarnacion
Carlos Santana
Jose Ramirez

Yes, it happened. We released the 2017 MLB Fantasy Alarm Draft Guide. I know it’s only 2016, but you need something to read if you don’t have anyone to share the holiday with. You might need something to read if you hate the people you’re spending the holiday with (I know you are out there). You might want to give your significant other a special gift? Maybe you should just reward yourself for a good year? Whatever the reason, the Guide is available right now! For more, check out this description of the Guide and why it is so amazing this season. It will end up being our best effort yet, no doubt... and it’s available right now.

INCIARTE SIGNS EXTENSION

Ender Inciarte signed a 5-year contract extension with the Braves for $30.25 million. “We feel that he's the best defensive center fielder in baseball and one of the best leadoff hitters in the game,” Braves general manager John Coppolella said. “Ender brings so much to our club, on and off the field, and we are happy to have him under club control for at least the next six years."

Inciarte is a Gold Glove outfielder who is just 26 years old. A .292 career hitter, Inciarte has hit .303 and .291 the last two seasons and he closed last year on a furious rush to the finish after a horrible start to the year (he hit .227 in the first half and .341 after the break). A .290 hitter with 20 steal potential is worth something in the fantasy game, he’s stolen 19/21/16 bases the last three years, though he’s only hit 13 homers in his career with a high of 45 RBI in his three year career. Unlike other players with his skillset, he’s carved out a starting spot that has allowed him to score 73 and 85 runs the last two years. He is what he is, but he should continue to be that guy for a long while. Hey, we could all use a .300 hitter with 20 steals as our 5th outfielder, right?

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday/Tuesday and Thursday/Friday, 8 PM EDT, Wednesday 7 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 9 PM EDT PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).