The M's Should Absolutely Try to Bring Back Former Reliever Who's Been Discarded By Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays surprisingly optioned former Seattle Mariners' reliever Erik Swanson down to Triple-A on Tuesday, leading to questions about whether or not the M's should look re-acquire him.
Per Jays' reporter Shi Davidi of Sportsnet on social media:
Blue Jays activate Chad Green from the IL and option Erik Swanson to triple-A Buffalo to make room.
Blue Jays activate Chad Green from the IL and option Erik Swanson to triple-A Buffalo to make room.
— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) May 28, 2024
It's been a tumultuous year for Swanson, who started out the season dealing with his son getting hit by a car in spring training, and then dealt with an injury that caused him to start the year on the injured list.
While it's not known how these events have impacted Swanson thus far in 2024, his performance has regressed. In 17 games for Toronto, he's 1-2 with a 9.22 ERA. He's struck out just 10 in 13.2 innings. This comes on the heels of him appearing in at least 55 games in each of the last two seasons. For the Mariners in 2022, he had a 1.68 ERA. After being traded to Toronto in 2023 for Teoscar Hernandez, he posted a 2.97.
The talent and resume are clearly there for Swanson, and in the absence of Matt Brash and Gregory Santos, the M's bullpen is kind of built like a house of cards leading to closer Andres Munoz.
If the M's can make the deal for a lower-level prospect, it seems like a good gamble to take. While Munoz has the ninth inning solidified, some combination of Gabe Speier, Tayler Saucedo, Austin Voth, Swanson and Trent Thornton could navigate innings six through eight.
The hope is that Santos comes back in July to help as well. Swanson is also under team control through 2025, meaning he has a full 1.5 years remaining. Again, if the deal is affordable, which it should be given Swanson's standing in Toronto, it seems like a worthwhile move for Seattle.
Swanson has been historically good against left-handed hitters, who only hit .239 against him. They only hit .198 against him in 2023. He could replace Kirby Snead in the 'pen, should the M's need to create the roster spot.
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