Bautista-Encarnacion era in Toronto may have come to an end with ALCS loss

TORONTO — The Toronto Blue Jays’ season is over after a five-game loss to Cleveland in the American League Championship Series. The era of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion anchoring the team’s offence may have come to an end along with it.

The veteran sluggers have been mainstays in the heart of the Blue Jays’ lineup for years. However, both are slated to become free agents in the off-season and it’s unclear whether they will re-sign or test the open market.

Neither Bautista nor Encarnacion wanted to address their future plans after the game.

“I don’t want to make this about myself,” Bautista said. “I don’t really feel that I’m in the proper state of mind to be talking about that. Obviously I know it’s a possibility but we’ll see what happens.”

Encarnacion, 33, is coming off another big season with 42 homers, 127 RBIs and a .263 batting average. Bautista, 36, battled some injuries this year and finished with 22 homers, 69 RBIs and a .234 average.

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Bautista doubled in the ninth inning of Toronto’s 3-0 loss to the Indians on Wednesday while Encarnacion struck out later in the frame. Fans were on their feet chanting their names during the at-bats.

Both players were big parts of the franchise’s return to prominence last year.

“I think they really helped put this team back on the map again, what they’ve accomplished,” said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. “And really both of them made their name here in Toronto. But baseball is still a business.

“It’s a game we play, but it’s still a big business and guys earn the right to try free agency, what have you. They both love it here, but it’s still a business.”

The Blue Jays won the East Division title in 2015 for the first time in 22 years and Bautista delivered a critical homer — complete with an epic bat flip — to power Toronto past Texas in the first round.

The Blue Jays went on to lose to the Kansas City Royals in the ALCS.

Toronto returned to the final four again this year, dispatching Baltimore in the wild-card game — thanks to an Encarnacion walkoff homer — and then a three-game sweep of the Rangers.

But a well-balanced Cleveland team proved to be too much for the 2016 squad.

The upcoming free-agent crop is considered weaker than normal so chances are good that both players will receive lucrative multi-year deals.

Whether team president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins are interested in bringing them back at the price they will command is unclear.

“If I’m not around them again, I have great memories, regardless of what they did on the field — two good guys,” Gibbons said. “And we spent a lot of time together, me and of course the coaching staff and everybody else.

“I’m proud of those guys and you hope they’re back.”

Bautista signed a US$65-million, five-year deal in 2011 and the team picked up a $14-million option for this season. Encarnacion, who signed a three-year extension in 2012 worth $29 million, is coming off a team option at $10 million.

Encarnacion, in particular, will be in line for a big raise.

“To be honest, I’m really sad because I don’t know what’s going to happen next,” Encarnacion said through a translator. “But overall I feel really proud for what the fans and what this organization have done for me.”

Other notable Blue Jays set to enter free agency include Canadian Michael Saunders, knuckleballer R.A. Dickey and southpaw reliever Brett Cecil.

Bautista entered the major leagues in 2004 with Baltimore. He joined the Blue Jays in 2008 and broke out in the 2010 season, hitting 54 homers and driving in 124 runs.

He has been one of the sport’s top sluggers ever since.

“This is a great team with a great core,” Bautista said. “A lot of potential and I think a great future.”

Encarnacion, meanwhile, made his big-league debut in 2005 with the Cincinnati Reds and joined the Blue Jays in 2009. He has at least 30 homers in each of the last five seasons.

“We would love to have everybody back,” said Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson. “We would love to have Bats back. We would love to have Eddie back.

“These guys have been the faces of this franchise for many years now.”

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Follow @GregoryStrongCP on Twitter.

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press