SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners continued to retool its struggling offense by acquiring a former All-Star from the Toronto Blue Jays Monday afternoon.
The Mariners will acquire former All-Star Justin Turner and cash considerations from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for minor league outfielder RJ Schreck.
Turner, an All-Star in 2017 and 2021, has hit six home runs and drove in 31 runs for the last-placed Blue Jays this season. The 39-year-old has spent most of this season as Toronto's designated hitter.
The deal was the latest in what has been a busy trade deadline for the Mariners, who have been working to improve an offense that has scored the 28th fewest runs in Major League Baseball (MLB) and is 29th in batting average this season.
Now the struggling offense will be without star center fielder Julio Rodríguez until August due to a high-ankle sprain and shortstop J.P. Crawford, who is expected to be out for four to six weeks due to a broken pinky finger.
These key absences left the Mariners with the impetus to add players before the league's trade deadline.
The Mariners sent a package of prospects last week to the Tampa Bay Rays for outfielder Randy Arozarena, an All-Star in 2023 who boasts power and speed. Days later, the Mariners traded struggling Ty France to the Cincinnati Reds for a minor-league catcher.
Seattle also addressed its bullpen by acquiring reliever Yimi Garcia from the Blue Jays on Friday.
The flurry of deadline trades comes as the Mariners are in the midst of a major slide over the past month that has seen them lose a 10-game lead in the AL West largely due to a struggling offense. Seattle is 12-20 since June 19 and trails Houston in the division standings.
While the Mariners have lagged behind in most hitting categories, the team is first in MLB in earned run average and quality starts.
The MLB trade deadline will be Tuesday at 3 p.m. PST.
