PHILADELPHIA -- Teoscar Hernández is a man of volume, literally and figuratively. 

The literal: At 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, Hernández's home run hacks -- like the one in Tuesday's 5-3 win over the Phillies -- are among the most effortless in baseball. The figurative: He believes his production is best measured in the collective and not the short stint.

It’s why Hernández didn’t panic after a 1-for-17 start and why his power numbers have taken off, perhaps more quietly as a byproduct of doing so in unison with the long-awaited breakout of Jarred Kelenic, who also homered Tuesday. 

“At the end of the year, you're going to look up and his numbers are going to be like, ‘Wow,’” Mariners manager Scott Servais said after Hernández crushed a decisive two-run homer in the sixth inning, his sixth of the year.

Despite this being his eighth season, it’s just the second in which Hernández has played a full April. 

In 2016, Hernández didn’t debut until August, when he was an Astros prospect. In '17, he was called up for one game, but he was then sent back down and dealt to Toronto at that year’s Trade Deadline. In '18, Hernández began the year at Triple-A Buffalo. In '20, the pandemic halted everyone. In '21, he was sidelined for 17 games with COVID-19. In '22, Hernández suffered a left oblique strain just six games in and missed nearly a month. So, '19 was the only outlier. 

He takes pride in being an everyday player, which is what’s made his April absences notable. 

“I'm one of those guys, it doesn't matter,” Hernández said. “If I can run, I'm going to be there. If my legs are good, I'm going to be on the field playing, doing the best that I can for the team.”

Since that sluggish start over his first five games, Hernández is 21-for-73, for a slash line of .288/.312/.562 (.874 OPS). He also had at least two flyouts on Seattle’s most recent homestand that might’ve left the yard in warmer months. 

Told that he’ll probably field more media requests if he continues to homer, Hernández -- who’s now crushed 127 since 2018 -- laughed and said confidently: “Well then, we’re going to be talking a lot.”

Hernández has now hoisted the new celebratory home run trident three times, tied for Kelenic for the team lead after they unveiled the prop last Wednesday. Kelenic got first dibs in the fifth inning on Tuesday when he crushed a 424-foot blast just right of straightaway center and beyond the ballpark’s deepest point.

Kelenic also had a single and a 105 mph double -- both to the left-center gap -- and nearly had another knock, a 98.3 mph liner that might’ve gone for extra bases, but Phillies left fielder Cristian Pache made a remarkable diving catch.

“Off the bat, I thought it was going to land,” Kelenic said. “But I know Pache, I played against him in the Minor Leagues. He’s super athletic, a really good player, so when he made that catch, I wasn’t too surprised.”

Of note, Kelenic exclusively saw lefties on Tuesday and is now 8-for-19 against southpaws this year after hitting .168/.251/.338 (.589 OPS) against them in his first two years.

“It doesn't matter who's out on the mound right now,” Servais said. “He is so locked in on his approach and what he's doing, and [we are] really excited that he's gained the confidence he has.”

Kelenic’s production is firmly in the conversation for AL Player of the Month for April at this point, given that he’s among the league leaders in OPS (1.121, first), slugging percentage (.726, first), wRC+ (210, first), wins above replacement (1.4, tied for second), batting average (.342, third) and on-base percentage (.395, eighth).

“He knows he belongs,” Servais said. “The talent, we've always seen it, but now it's playing out at the big league level and teams know it. They know he's hot, and they're pitching him tough. He's laying off the close pitches. He isn't missing his pitch.”

Aside from Hernández and Kelenic, the bottom of the order chipped in, too. The Nos. 7-9 spots, which had mostly been a liability, were also vital as Cal Raleigh, Jose Caballero and J.P. Crawford accounted for two runs and two RBIs while going 3-for-10.

“I’m telling you right now, we’ve got a lot of horses on this team,” Kelenic said. “You get us all clicking and all swinging a bat, there’s not a team that can beat us.”