Edwin Encarnacion
The parrot walk defined a generation of Blue Jays fans, but Encarnacion's peak power surge came later than most sluggers. He didn't crack 20 home runs until age 27, then proceeded to launch 239 bombs over his next seven seasons from 2012-2018.
That 2012 breakout wasn't a fluke — Encarnacion became one of baseball's most reliable middle-of-the-order threats, averaging 37 homers per season during his prime Toronto years. His 424 career long balls rank him among the top sluggers of the 2010s, despite never leading the league in any major offensive category.
The Dominican Republic native carved out 16 big league seasons by reinventing himself as a pure designated hitter. His career OPS+ of 112 reveals steady above-average production, built on patience at the plate and legitimate 40-homer power when locked in.
Career · Batting
16 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | CIN | 69 | 211 | 9 | 31 | .232 | .744 | 99 |
| 2006 | CIN | 117 | 406 | 15 | 72 | .276 | .831 | 108 |
| 2007 | CIN | 139 | 502 | 16 | 76 | .289 | .794 | 105 |
| 2008 | CIN | 146 | 506 | 26 | 68 | .251 | .807 | 108 |
| 2009 | TOR | 85 | 293 | 13 | 39 | .225 | .729 | 97 |
| 2010 | TOR | 96 | 332 | 21 | 51 | .244 | .787 | 108 |
| 2011 | TOR | 134 | 481 | 17 | 55 | .272 | .787 | 109 |
| 2012 | TOR | 151 | 542 | 42 | 110 | .280 | .941 | 130 |
| 2013 | TOR | 142 | 530 | 36 | 104 | .272 | .904 | 127 |
| 2014 | TOR | 128 | 477 | 34 | 98 | .268 | .901 | 129 |
| 2015 | TOR | 146 | 528 | 39 | 111 | .277 | .929 | 129 |
| 2016 | TOR | 160 | 601 | 42 | 127 | .263 | .886 | 120 |
| 2017 | CLE | 157 | 554 | 38 | 107 | .258 | .881 | 117 |
| 2018 | CLE | 137 | 500 | 32 | 107 | .246 | .810 | 111 |
| 2019 | SEA | 109 | 418 | 34 | 86 | .244 | .875 | 116 |
| 2020 | CWS | 44 | 159 | 10 | 19 | .157 | .627 | 85 |
| Career | 1960 | 7040 | 424 | 1261 | .260 | — | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.