Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion, who’s yet to play in a game this spring due to a dental issue, has now been shut down for at least a week with a strained oblique muscle.
Toronto manager John Gibbons told Greg Zeck of MLB.com that “it’s minor, but those things can turn into bad things if you don’t watch it.” There’s now some doubt about Encarnacion being healthy for Opening Day, although Gibbons insists “he’s one guy that probably doesn’t need as many at-bats” to be ready.
Encarnacion is a huge and perhaps somewhat underrated part of the Blue Jays’ scary lineup, hitting .277 with 39 homers and a .929 OPS in 146 games last season and averaging 38 homers with a .919 OPS from 2012-2015.
