Yahoo Sports 
Edwin Encarnacion’s career year shouldn’t be overshadowed by Blue Jays lack of success
Edwin Encarnacion stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, with two outs and the Toronto Blue Jays trailing 9-2 to the Tampa Bay Rays. The Jays were moments away from another loss; it would be their 10th in 14 games. At that point, whether or not Encarnacion made contact on a Cesar Ramos pitch seemed irrelevant. But all year long, whether the Jays have been involved in meaningful or meaningless baseball, Encarnacion's swing has remained consistent.
So after taking the first Ramos pitch for a strike, Encarnacion drilled the second pitch from the Rays reliever into the centre-field seats at the Rogers Centre. It was his 37th home run of the season, but Toronto went on to lose 9-4.
That's the kind of year it's been for both the Blue Jays and Encarnacion. While the team has struggled — especially in the second half of the season — Encarnacion has continued to find success.
His 38 home runs puts him second amongst American League hitters and he also sits in the top five in RBI's, OPS and SLG.
Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos rewarded the right-handed hitter for his consistent performance at the plate with a three-year $27-million contract extension in mid-July.
He told the media after giving Encarnacion his new deal:
"We've really seen him grow as a player, grow as someone who quietly leads in the clubhouse as well that's very well-respected. The ability's always been there. I think it finally started to show at the end of last year and currently now."
Two years ago it seemed as though Encarnacion was on his way out of Toronto.
He was sent down to triple-A Las Vegas in June of 2010 after hitting just .200 over the first three months of the season and was becoming known around the city as a defensive liability at third base.
Then after the 2010 season the Oakland A's claimed Encarnacion off waivers, but when they didn't offer him a contract he returned to Toronto, where he's rebuilt his swing and in turn seemingly rebuilt his career.
However, even with his strong start to the 2012 season, as the trade deadline rolled around some wondered with the Jays pitching staff depleted whether they'd consider trading Encarnacion for some assistance on the mound in an effort to stay in the playoff race. But Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star shot down some peoples trade thoughts and went as far as to compare Edwin's late development and success to that of Jose Bautista:
"The reason the Jays have not discussed a long-term deal with DH/1B Edwin Encarnacion as of yet is his history of injuries. They would like to see the 29-year-old, who surely desires to see his career develop like Jose Bautista's, finish the season healthy and on fire. The Jays need to see a full season of Edwin numbers in his prime, to see if this is indeed the reincarnation of their main man, Bautista, whose once-dormant career blossomed at a similar age and in a similar environment."
As Griffin put it, the Jays would like to see Encarnacion finish the season healthy and on fire. With his 38th home run Friday, the third in his last seven games, he's well on his way to doing just that.