Edwin Encarnacion hits three homers, drives in nine in Jays win

If Major League Baseball is really concerned about pace of play, they might have to consider instituting a short-term mercy rule for all of the remaining Toronto Blue Jays games this season.

Just ask the Detroit Tigers.

Toronto's "no mercy" tour continued at their expense on Saturday afternoon at the Rogers Centre. The Jays offense erupted early and often as they slugged their way to a 15-1 victory.

The star on this particular day was Edwin Encarnacion, who entered play with a 23-game hitting streak. It didn't take him long to extend it to 24. In the first inning, Encarnacion started the scoring with a mammoth three-run homer.

That was just the beginning though for Encarnacion. In the sixth inning, he stepped up again and launched a two-run homer off Guido Knudson. One inning later, he capped his monster afternoon with a grand slam against Alex Wilson, giving him three home runs and a career-high nine RBIs for the game.

They aren't kidding.

To say Encarnacion is on fire right now would be an understatement. The hitting streak says plenty, but the production goes well beyond that. For example, over his last 17 games, he has six games with three RBIs or more. Over his last seven, he's driven in 23 runs total. That is remarkable production even if you acknowledge the RBI stat is overrated and outdated.

Here's another interesting stat courtesy of MLB.com. Of Encarnacion's last 78 hits, 41 have gone for extra bases.

As for the Blue Jays offense collectively, Saturday was their 21st game this season with 10 runs or more, which is a franchise record. Overall, the team is now 30-6 in games decided by five or more runs.

Before acquiring Troy Tulowitzki at the trade deadline, Toronto's offense was already the best in baseball. Since acquiring Tulowitzki, the Blue Jays have been both the irresistible force and immovable object. No one can stop them, and everybody knows a three-game series against them can and likely will disrupt the confidence of their pitching staff.

They are literally slugging their way to October, and will no doubt provide one of the most interesting and entertaining stories down the stretch.

We know we'll be watching.