The Seattle Mariners have acquired All-Star outfielder Teoscar Hernandez from the Toronto Blue Jays, Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto announced Wednesday.
Hernandez, 30, hit .267 with 25 home runs for Toronto last season, though those numbers were down from his All-Star campaign the previous year (.296, 32 HR, 116 RBI), when he won his second consecutive American League Silver Slugger award.
‘We began our offseason with the intent to add impact and length to our lineup,’ Dipoto said. ‘In adding Teoscar to an already solid foundation, we feel we’ve become a far more dangerous offensive club.’
The Mariners finished in the middle of the pack offensively in 2021, so Hernandez will give them a much-needed power bat in the middle of their lineup to complement AL rookie of the year Julio Rodriguez and 2022 All-Star first baseman Ty France.
After posting a 90-72 record, the Mariners are coming off their first postseason appearance since the 2001 season, ending the longest drought in the four major North American professional sports. They swept the Blue Jays in their wild-card playoff series before losing to the eventual World Series champion Houston Astros in the divisional playoffs.
Seattle will send reliever Erik Swanson (3-2, 1.68 ERA in 2022) and left-handed pitching prospect Adam Macko to Toronto in the deal.