Blue Jays: Teoscar Hernandez trade paying dividends on the daily

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Teoscar Hernandez is constantly reminding the Houston Astros of their 2017 trade deadline mistake.

The Blue Jays landed Teoscar Hernandez and Nori Aoki from the Astros in exchange for veteran pitcher Francisco Liriano. Houston was adding complementary pieces to a roster built for the postseason and paid a premium price for the southpaw. As you all recall, the Astros would win the World Series in 2017, a few months after shipping Hernandez out of the Lone Star State.

Liriano would make 20 relief appearances for the Astros posting a 4.40 earned run average in 14.1 innings of work. The well-traveled veteran also made five postseason appearances for the Astros en route to the championship.

Meanwhile, Hernandez is quickly rounding into one of the premier power hitters in the majors and is tied for second in the majors with 12 home runs thus far this season. The 27-year old has crushed 68 round-trippers since joining the Blue Jays in the summer of 2017.

More from Toronto Blue Jays News

• Blue Jays: Snapping cold streaks at the right time
• Who Should the Blue Jays Extend First: Guerrero, Bichette or Manoah?
• Blue Jays now hold the top Wild Card spot, and yes that’s a good thing
• Blue Jays may have the tools to use a Bullpen Day
• Blue Jays win important first game after Bichette’s late inning heroics

The outfielder has always had power, however, he appears to be having much better at-bats this season and has drastically cut down on his strikeout total during the first 30 games of the 2020 season.

In 123 plate appearances this season, Hernandez has only whiffed 35 times while walking 10 times. Over the past two previous seasons, the right-hander has struck out 316 times. If the slugger can continue to cut down on the whiffs, he could be a staple in the Blue Jays outfield for a long time to come.

Hernandez sports a much-improved .295/.350/.661 slash line while accumulating a 1.1 offensive WAR. If he continues to produce at this rate, he has the opportunity to make this trade look really lopsided when it is all said and done.

I realize the Astros were chasing a World Series when they made the deal, however, Hernandez has more homers than anyone on their current roster. Unfortunately for the Astros, there are no mulligans in baseball.