Edwin Encarnacion's agent said Wednesday that the slugging first baseman has multiyear offers from six teams, but it's starting to sink in that he won't return to the Blue Jays, which was his goal entering free agency.
"It's not that there isn't interest in him, but we made it clear that Edwin wanted to return to Toronto, that's where he felt his home was," agent Paul Kinzer said in a radio interview with Sportsnet 590 The Fan.
Kinzer said most of the offers Encarnacion has received are in the three-year range.
Kinzer said the Blue Jays did make an offer, but that wasn't until a day before the beginning of free agency and Encarnacion wanted to become a free agent and see which teams were interested in him.
Kinzer said the Blue Jays' signing of first baseman Kendrys Morales to a three-year, $33 million contract "came as a surprise."
"We weren't expecting them to move so quickly," he said, adding later that "we weren't going to make a move without talking to the Blue Jays."
Kinzer said his first meeting was going to be with the Blue Jays on behalf of Encarnacion, but when Toronto signed first baseman/outfielder Steve Pearce to a two-year, $12.5 million deal at the start of the winter meetings, "we felt like the door was pretty much closed."
"Nobody's mad at anybody. It's business," Kinzer said. "They saw an opportunity and they pursued it."
The fact that losing a first-round draft pick (for teams outside the top 10) is attached to signing Encarnacion also has hurt his market, Kinzer said. Encarnacion received a qualifying offer of $17.2 million (which he rejected), tying him to draft compensation. This is the final year that will be the case for free agents thanks to the new collective bargaining agreement.
Asked how Encarnacion is taking still being unsigned, Kinzer replied, the "same way as he plays baseball."
"He doesn't get excited. It will work out," Kinzer said. "The only thing now is the realization has started to sink in that he won't be a Blue Jay. That's been a little frustrating because that was always his goal."
The 33-year-old Encarnacion tied with David Ortiz for the American League lead with 127 RBIs last season while hitting a career-matching best 42 home runs and batting .263. The first baseman/designated hitter was an All-Star this year for the third time.
Encarnacion (239) ranks third behind Carlos Delgado (336) and Jose Bautista (265) on the Blue Jays' career home run list. He arrived in Toronto by trade from Cincinnati in 2009, signed a three-year, $29 million extension in 2013 and is coming off a team option at $10 million.