Edwin Encarnacion

I am finally at the end of my series examining the relative strengths and weaknesses of the teams in the AL East, on a position-by-position basis. The players at each position have been ranked in relation to their peers within the division, with each team being assigned points based on where their player ranks in comparison to the other players.

Today, the series concludes with a look at the Designated Hitters.

The best player will earn 10 points for his team, with the remaining players being assigned points as follows: 7-5-3-1.

Mike Napoli was a member of the Blue Jays just long enough for most of the team's writers and fans to get familiar with his capabilities and salary situation and come to a conclusion as to where he would fit in with the club. Napoli seemed to fit as the team's primary DH, which caused a chain effect with the rest of the position players.

There’s word going around baseball that the Blue Jays may be on the verge of another trade. Now if you’re yelling at the computer screen, asking “Why?” just calm down. There is an obvious abundance of DH/1B types on the roster. After the Vernon Wells trade the Jays now have four, yes four, players who can comfortably fit at DH.

Baseball's offseason player movement is in full swing at the moment, albeit with a certain team from New York being much quieter than anyone expected. Today, word came out that the Blue Jays had joined in on the fun and signed a free agent.

As reported by Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun, the Blue Jays put both Vernon Wells and Edwin Encarnacion on waivers earlier in the week. News has come out that both of them have cleared waivers and can now be traded.

Wells comes as no surprise, given his monster contract, but Encarnacion clearing does raise questions on his future with the ball club. 

There have been many rumours swirling about the Blue Jays, suggesting who they might be moving before the July 31st trade deadline.  Names like Scott Downs, Jose Bautista, John Buck, and Kevin Gregg are all being mentioned as possible trade chips.  The rumour mill on ESPN even suggests that they might be buyers.  So what are Jays fans supposed to draw from all of this?

You may have heard some rumblings about this Stephen Strasburg guy. Allegedly, he's pretty good.

Check that: he must be good, as usually the only time a Washington National warrants media attention is in relation to a comedy of errors (cough, cough, Nyjer Morgan , cough, cough).

Just as Travis Snider was on his way to an outstanding month of May at the plate he's now on his way down to Dunedin, Florida for an MRI and rehab. Snider injured his wrist in Friday night's game, a game in which he went deep for the second consecutive night. It's not clear yet how long he will be out and wrist injuries can be a tricky injury to recover from.