Cleveland Indians: Edwin Encarnacion must repeat Friday’s performance

Edwin Encarnacion must continue to play like he did on Friday to help his Cleveland Indians fight for the top spot in the AL Central.

Cleveland Indians fans have been waiting all season for Edwin Encarnacion to have a big game and he finally had one Friday night.

He finished with his first three-hit game as a member of the Indians, and hit a go-ahead home run that put the team up for good. It helps when Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen are the pitchers tasked with holding the lead.

And although Encarnacion did hit two home runs in a game in Cincinnati on May 23, this three-hit performance is what fans have been waiting for.

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The Indians don’t need Encarnacion to hit .300, but his mark of .198 on May 15 was alarming. The strikeouts were piling up while the hits were rare, making that time a crucial point in his first year with the team.

The veteran has responded, raising his average to .240 after last night’s game and has only struck out twice in 16 at-bats this month.

Batting .240 is not something to brag about, but hopefully the upward trend continues. Because if this team is going to remain a contender, Encarnacion cannot continue to struggle in the fifth spot in the lineup.

He has already been dropped out of the cleanup spot, and further struggles would only drop him lower.

But Friday night’s game was a new side of Encarnacion fans have been waiting to see. And based on how he has played throughout his career, fans should expect plenty more three-hit nights along with home runs that disrupt Progressive Field’s bird and squirrel populations.

Next: Minor league review for May

His start has not been ideal, but a game like that at home in front of a packed house should help his confidence going forward. The team is going to need him to play well, and Friday’s game looked like a step in that direction.