Mariners' Hernandez talks Jays trade: I wanted to stay with 1 team

Teoscar Hernandez returned to the Rogers Centre for the first time since the Toronto Blue Jays traded him to the Seattle Mariners this past winter and had some thoughts about the move.

"You always want to think that way," Hernandez said Friday when asked if he wanted to be a member of the Blue Jays for his entire career, according to Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun. "I'm not the guy who wanted to go bouncing around to 10 different teams. I wanted to stay with one as long as I can do my thing."

Toronto sent Hernandez to Seattle in November in exchange for high-leverage reliever Erik Swanson and pitching prospect Adam Macko.

"I wasn't thinking it would be that quick, but it happened right away," Hernandez added, discussing his surprise by the move after seeing rumors surface on social media immediately following last season. "But it's something you never expect. Especially me. I was here for six years and spent a lot of time with the boys. But it is what it is. It's a business. They did whatever they could to make the team better."

The former All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger spent the previous five and a half seasons with the Blue Jays. The club acquired Hernandez from the Houston Astros ahead of the 2017 trade deadline alongside Nori Aoki for Francisco Liriano.

The 30-year-old is off to a slow start with his new team, hitting .216/.250/.422 with six homers and one stolen base. In his return to Toronto on Friday, Hernandez went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts while playing right field and hitting fifth. The two teams continue the three-game series through Sunday.