Hernandez has been an offensive starter for Toronto in recent seasons and is eligible for free agency after the 2023 campaign. While his power and presence in the clubhouse will be missed, Atkins was happy to acquire a high-leverage reliever in Swanson and a solid outlook on Macko. “No trade is ever easy and it always comes down to trade-offs for both sides,” Atkins said in a video call with reporters. “Fortunately it made sense for both teams.” The 30-year-old Hernandez, who is entering his eighth big league season, batted .267 last season with 25 homers and 77 runs. An all star in 2021, the outfielder won Silver Slugger awards that year and in 2020. He said he enjoyed his time with the Blue Jays and learned a lot in five-plus seasons in Toronto. “They trusted me and gave me a chance to show everything I got and luckily I did,” Hernandez said in a video call later in the day. For what you meant to our team and the community, thank you, Teoscar 👏 pic.twitter.com/bWqzy94Ok9 —@BlueJays Hernandez is entering the final year of his arbitration eligibility and is expected to earn over US$14 million in 2023. “We entered our offseason looking to add impact and length to our lineup,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in a statement. “By adding Teoscar to an already strong base, we feel we have become a much more dangerous attacking club.” Swanson was 3-2 with a 1.68 earned run average in 57 games for the Mariners in 2022. The 6-foot-6 right-hander has the valuable swing and miss skill set that stymied Toronto’s bullpen at times last season. “Things have improved and we feel we have him at a very strong point in his career,” Atkins said. “And he’s still very young.” The 29-year-old Swanson, who made his major league debut in 2019, had 70 hits and 10 walks last season. He is entering his first year of arbitration eligibility and is expected to make around $1.4 million next year. Atkins noted that Swanson had a “really remarkable year” getting strikeouts on both sides of the plate, adding that he has the ability to pitch in any inning. Swanson is under team control through the 2025 season. “He’s always been an aggressive pitcher and always had the ability to locate the fastball at the top of the rail,” Mariners GM Justin Hollander said. “Split finger this year has really changed [his] universe. It’s something he’s been working on for a long time and he’s really taken it to another level.”

Canadian resident headed to Jays

Macko, a 21-year-old from Bratislava, Slovakia, made eight starts for advanced-A Everett in 2022. He has permanent resident status in Canada after living in Stony Plain, Alta., for six years. “If we can get him in a position where he can sustain and put up a full season of innings, he could easily become one of the best prospects in baseball,” Atkins said. “He has the arsenal to do it.” OFFICIAL: We have acquired RHP Erik Swanson and LHP Adam Macko from the Mariners in exchange for Teoscar Hernández.
Welcome to pic.twitter.com/FJzWZMdqMS —@BlueJays The trade gives the Blue Jays some financial flexibility and could set up Whit Merrifield, Cavan Biggio or Nathan Lukes for more playing time with regular Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and George Springer. Hernandez posted a big message of thanks to fans, teammates and the organization on his Instagram account. She ended the post with a line in all caps: “You will always have a big part of my heart,” with a blue heart emoji. “I think the world of him. We’re going to miss him,” Atkins said. “We got to the point where we felt acquisitions on the prevention side would help us. This creates some flexibility for us in terms of resources as well. “Thinking about where we had depth, there was an opportunity to move.” The Mariners swept the Blue Jays in a best-of-3 wild-card series last month at the Rogers Centre. Hernandez hit two homers in Game 2, but Seattle rallied from a seven-run deficit to win 10-9.