The Seattle Mariners acquired second baseman Kolten Wong from the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday for outfielder Jesse Winker and infielder Abraham Toro, the teams announced.
The Mariners will also get around $1.75 million in cash from Milwaukee, sources familiar with the deal told ESPN.
Seattle entered the winter targeting bats to improve its lineup, and the 32-year-old Wong is its second trade acquisition following a deal for outfielder Teoscar Hernández. Wong, a two-time Gold Glove winner, had a career-best 15 home runs for the Brewers and hit .251/.339/.430 in 2022. Milwaukee picked up a $10 million option on him in November and had multiple suitors.
"Second base is really an area that we've struggled to get production out of, particularly offensively,'' Seattle general manager Justin Hollander said. "His game really seems to be trending upward year after year offensively, particularly against right-handed pitching. He's learning to elevate the ball. He makes a ton of contact.''
In exchange, the Brewers will receive the 29-year-old Winker and 25-year-old Toro. Seattle had acquired Winker in March as the centerpiece of a six-player deal. He struggled to find the power stroke he had displayed in 2021, hitting .219/.344/.344 for the Mariners and undergoing left knee surgery following the season. He will make $8.25 million in 2023.
"A lot of our players in our mix who have a lot of flexibility -- you guys know that we value that very much as a franchise,'' Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said. "Having added depth across the entire infield is something that we feel really good about.''
Seattle dealt for Toro at the trade deadline in 2021, sending relievers Kendall Graveman and Rafael Montero to Houston for Toro and reliever Joe Smith. Toro lost his third-base job to Eugenio Suarez, whom Seattle acquired in the Winker deal, and played mostly at second and third in 2022, hitting .185/.239/.324. He is in his first year of arbitration.
The Brewers now have traded Wong and outfielder Hunter Renfroe, both of whom are a year from free agency, this offseason. Earlier incarnations of the deal with Seattle included a third team, sources said, leaving open the possibility that Winker could eventually be dealt again.
Seattle finished 90-72 this year, making the postseason for the first time in two decades, while Milwaukee went 86-76, ending up a game back of the final wild card spot to Philadelphia, which won the National League pennant.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.