This morning, the Blue Jays made an important transaction by sending Teoscar Hernandez to the Seattle Mariners. In return, two pitchers took the opposite path.
Ross Atkins said he didn’t feel the need to touch the heart of the lineup at the end of the season, but now a big name is leaving Toronto to return to the American West.
Is this a risk for Torontonians? Obviously. This creates a hole offensively speaking.
After all, Teo was a big hitter for the Blue Jays, but he was also a leader in the locker room. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is sad right now… He is not the only one since Teo was a crowd favorite in Ontario.
Teoscar Hernandez is 129 homers in six seasons (609 games) in Toronto. It’s two Silver Rods. It’s a participation in the All-Star Game. It is power.
But it’s also an average defensive game and that was a long-term uncertainty.
In a tweet that appears to have since been deleted, reporter Hector Gomez posted that the outfielder, who will be a free agent in a year, was unhappy he didn’t get a long-term offer from the Blue Jays.
Could this have contributed to his departure? Maybe.
The Blue Jays, in fact, did not make a bad trade. They notably got their hands on a young hopeful named Adam Macko.
He’s a youngster who needs mileage in the minors, but is a left-handed starter who may have potential, rumor has it. And he went to high school in Alberta.
But above all, the club got their hands on Erik Swanson.
Swanson, that’s exactly what the doctor ordered for the Jays. He is a reliever who is right-handed, but who is still excellent in important situations.
The Jays get a reliever who has, in 57 outings, thrown 53.2 innings and averaged 1.68. He only gave away three homers.
But above all, it fills a need: that of generating momentum in the butter from the enclosure. He had 70 strikeouts in 2022, which is pretty good for a pitcher like him.
The Blue Jays traded one year of Teo for three years of control of Swanson and a prospect who has seven years of control. Seen like that, it’s not ugly.
The Blue Jays traded a projected salary of $14.4M for a projected salary of $1.6M. Seen like that, it’s not ugly.
The Blue Jays therefore have the flexibility to get a good outfielder with a left-handed stick. Seen like that, it’s not ugly.
But the Blue Jays traded Teoscar Hernandez to fill a relief need. And seen like that, it’s ugly since the club should have other solutions to fill its barn with arms.
But OK. Trading Hernandez, who was in the sights of three or four teams, was more than a way to fill a relief need: it was a management of the club’s assets.
Why? Because if the Jays weren’t negotiating with Hernandez, it was probably deemed that he was not the player to target for a long-term contract.
Right now, the Blue Jays have several big contracts in their pocket. In the short term, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Matt Chapman will be free in a year… and I really don’t see them losing Gurriel Jr. without getting anything in return.
Can Gurriel Jr. join Alek Manoah, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette…in addition to existing contracts?
The Blue Jays needed to make room and that was done in an asset management deal. Because that’s mostly what it is, in fact.
But there is a next step: filling his position.
The Jays have proven in recent years not to be afraid to take out the checkbook. Everything indicates that they will continue to do so and today’s transaction has just freed up some money.
And that money will clearly be used for reinforcements in the outfield. After all, in the past 24 hours, the Jays said goodbye to Raimel Tapia, Bradley Zimmer and Hernandez. Not to mention Jackie Bradley Jr.
So the Blue Jays currently have George Springer and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. as everyday outfielders. And on that, we know that Springer will have days like DH.
Cavan Biggio, Otto Lopez and Nathan Lukes are also in the picture, but it’s going to take a top left-handed outfielder (at bat). And right now, everything points to the Jays being on the case.
So are the Blue Jays better than this morning? After all, for a club aiming for the World Series, that’s the question to ask.
Right now the answer is no.
But in effect, the Blue Jays have created flexibility to ensure the answer can be yes by the start of the season. The total portrait of the transaction, with its “collateral damage”, will be analyzed after a few other personnel movements.
And to get there, Ross Atkins will have to get to work.
