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Dipoto: Mariners Hope To Add “Three Or Four” Relievers In Offseason

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Expanded format or not, the Mariners stuck around the periphery of the playoff picture longer than most onlookers expected. Seattle finished the 2020 season within striking distance of a .500 record (27-33) and saw key young players like Kyle Lewis and Justus Sheffield take important steps forward.

The Mariners’ 2020 relief corps, however, was disastrous by virtually any measure. Mariners relievers ranked 28th in ERA (5.92) and even worse in the estimation of fielding-independent metrics. The bullpen posted the game’s 29th-ranked SIERA (4.99) and was dead last in both FIP (5.81) and xFIP (5.69).

Only the Rockies and Marlins bullpens struck out a fewer percentage of batters faced, and only the Mets bullpen walked a higher percentage of opponents. The Phillies were the lone team whose relievers averaged more homers allowed per nine innings. The Mariners were also a bottom-three bullpen in terms of swinging-strike rate, first-pitch strike rate and opponents’ chase rate. In short, Seattle relievers couldn’t miss bats, control the strike zone or avoid loud contact. They weren’t baseball’s worst bullpen thanks to some historically bad showings in Philadelphia and Denver, but that’s not exactly a technicality in which a team should take much pride.

It should surprise no one, then, that general manager Jerry Dipoto made the bullpen his clear focus in chatting with reporters at season’s end (links via Corey Brock of The Athletic and Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). But while many GMs speak in generalities with regard to their offseason needs, Dipoto was more specific, suggesting that the Mariners could add “three or four” new relievers — likely via free agency. (Of course, as we know by now, we should also never rule out the trade market as an avenue for Dipoto.)

While the GM cautioned that he might not pursue the market’s “marquee names” — Liam Hendriks, Kirby Yates, old friend Alex Colome and the resurgent Trevor Rosenthal are among the top available arms — it was a rather straightforward declaration of his intent to be more active than most of his peers on the bullpen market. As Brock rightly points out, spending top dollar to build a bullpen via free agency is precisely what led to the aforementioned catastrophe in the Rockies’ bullpen, but Dipoto sounds as though he plans a more measured approach to making bulk additions.

If the Mariners do wish to spend big, they’d certainly be able to do so. Seattle just over $50MM committed to next year’s payroll, per Jason Martinez of Roster Resource, and their arbitration class is rather light. Mitch Haniger, Tom Murphy and J.P. Crawford are the only locks to be tendered contracts among Seattle’s arbitration-eligible players. Mallex Smith was already outrighted and will be able to become a free agent by virtue of his service time. Carl Edwards Jr. is also arb-eligible but pitched just 4 2/3 innings due to injury.

Other additions will likely be made beyond the bullpen, though it doesn’t sound like they’ll be the primary area of focus. Divish suggests that a free-agent rotation piece will likely be in the cards, particularly given Dipoto’s indication that the Mariners will continue to utilize a six-man rotation. Speculatively, a veteran outfielder who could serve both as an early-season bridge to uber-prospect Jarred Kelenic and a safety net for long-injured Haniger could be prudent.

Speaking of Haniger, one of the more encouraging takeaways from Dipoto’s comments was his assertion that the 29-year-old is at long last believed to be healthy. Haniger’s recovery “has really picked up steam in the past 30 or 40 days,” Dipoto said, expressing confidence that he’ll be the team’s Opening Day right fielder in 2021.

That would be a welcome sight for Mariners fans, who saw Haniger break out with a All-Star 2018 season –. 285/.366/.493, 26 homers, 38 doubles, four triples, eight steals, solid defense — before a freak series of injuries torpedoed his 2019-20 seasons. Haniger fouled a ball into his groin in June 2019, resulting in a ruptured testicle. While rehabbing that already gruesome injury, Haniger suffered an adductor tear that snowballed into a herniated disc in his back. He ultimately underwent a microdiscectomy procedure that wiped out his entire 2020 season.

An improved bullpen, Haniger’s return, Kelenic’s expected debut and some additional growth from young talents like Evan White, Shed Long Jr. and/or Crawford could lead to another major step forward for the Mariners. That’s a lot of things still needing to break in their direction, but Dipoto no longer sounds like a GM in the midst of an all-out rebuild. The Mariners’ goal next season, per the GM, is to contend for a postseason berth. “I don’t think that’s unrealistic,” said Dipoto.

Mariners Notes: Haniger, Outfield, Sixto, Phillies

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The latest from Seattle…

  • Though Jarred Kelenic, Taylor Trammell, and Julio Rodriguez are expected to be part of the Mariners’ outfield of the future, Mitch Haniger is still a part of the team’s present.  Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times looks at Haniger and the broader outfield plan as a whole, noting that Haniger is expected to be ready to participate in Spring Training.  It has been a brutal 15 months for Haniger, who hasn’t played since June 2019 due to a ruptured testicle, a torn abductor muscle, and then a herniated disc.  It remains to be seen if Haniger can recapture his 2018 All-Star form when he does get back onto the field, though if he plays well and stays healthy, Divish figures Haniger might still hold some trade value, considering that he is under arbitration control through the 2022 season.  Since Trammell and Rodriguez aren’t likely to be in the majors until at least 2022, there is also a case for the M’s to keep Haniger, especially if he remains a productive player and if the Mariners start to become regular contenders.
  • The Mariners’ 2018-19 offseason was marked by several major trades, including a notable deal that saw Seattle land J.P. Crawford and (the soon-to-be-flipped) Carlos Santana from the Phillies in exchange for Jean Segura, James Pazos, and Juan Nicasio.  However, an earlier incarnation of that deal would have seen Segura and Edwin Diaz head to Philly, while Sixto Sanchez would have been part of the trade package coming back to the Mariners, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.  It makes for an interesting what-if for Seattle fans, as moving Diaz in that trade would have altered several other future deals, most obviously the blockbuster swap with the Mets that brought Kelenic and Justin Dunn into the organization and sent Diaz and Robinson Cano to New York.  Rosenthal adds another interesting detail in noting that the Mariners kept trying to acquire Sanchez even after he had been dealt to the Marlins as part of the J.T. Realmuto trade with the Phils in February 2019.  Needless to say, it doesn’t seem like Sanchez is going anywhere for a long time considering how impressive the young righty has looked in his first Major League season.

AL Injury Notes: Osuna, Cruz, Mariners, Guerrero, Iglesias

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Some injury notes from around the American League:

  • Astros’ closer Roberto Osuna has progressed to throwing, per GM James Click (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Osuna was seemingly ticketed for a Tommy John surgery after going down with an elbow injury earlier, although the reliever instead elected to rehab and attempt to return this season. The likelihood of that happening isn’t clear, but it’s generally encouraging to hear that he’s throwing again.
  • Twins’ DH Nelson Cruz was scratched from today’s lineup against the Cubs. He’s dealing with right knee soreness, per various reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com). Eddie Rosario, who was initially slated to start in left field, got to DH instead, with LaMonte Wade, Jr. taking over in left. Cruz has again been among MLB’s best hitters, slashing .314/.403/.623 over 201 plate appearances.
  • A pair of Mariners are unsurprisingly out for the season, per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (Twitter links). Catcher Tom Murphy has been shut down; he’ll miss the entire year due to a fractured metatarsal in his left foot. Outfielder Mitch Haniger continues to build up strength and endurance but hasn’t yet begun baseball activities, per Divish. Like Murphy, Haniger missed all of 2020.
  • The Blue Jays held Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. out of today’s lineup as a precaution, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (via Twitter). The young first baseman felt “a little dizzy” after being hit by a pitch in the helmet last night, per Nicholson-Smith. The Jays can afford to slow play things with Guerrero, as they sit four games up on Seattle for the final playoff spot in the American League.
  • Orioles’ shortstop José Iglesias left tonight’s game after getting hit on the left hand by a Charlie Morton pitch, relays Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). Pat Valaika stepped in at short in his stead. The 30-year-old Iglesias, a longtime defensive stalwart, has been stellar when healthy for Baltimore, hitting .377/.406/.515 in 139 plate appearances. He has been diagnosed a left wrist contusion, per Roch Kubtako of MASNsports.com (Twitter link).

West Health Notes: A’s, D-backs, Mariners, Giants, Rangers

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Players who are at high risk of contracting the coronavirus have the right to opt out of participating this season, but they’d still receive full pay and service time. Athletics reliever Jake Diekman, who has ulcerative colitis and who had his colon removed in 2017, is one of those players. Diekman, however, informed Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he has no interest in opting out of the campaign – at least, not yet. “I’ve never thought once about opting out,” said the southpaw, though he added: “Say two or three guys on the team get it, we’ve all been around each other. I don’t know if I’d opt out in the middle of the season, but it definitely worries you.” Slusser also spoke with A’s utility player Chad Pinder, whose wife is expecting a baby in September, about the season. Pinder said, in part: “We have to do it right — or it just might not work. But there is a risk to this.”

  • An unnamed player on the Diamondbacks tested positive for the coronavirus in Arizona within the last month, general manager Mike Hazen said Wednesday (via Bob Nightengale of USA Today). That player was not using their facility, though, Hazen added. It’s unclear how his recovery has gone.
  • The Mariners have “had a few players test positive” for the virus, general manager Jerry Dipoto said Wednesday (via Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). Fortunately, Dipoto went on to reveal that “they’re asymptomatic, and they feel great.”
  • More on the Mariners, who are uncertain whether outfielder Mitch Haniger will be ready for the resumption of spring training, according to GM Jerry Dipoto (via Divish). The past year has been an injury-filled nightmare for Haniger, who only played in 63 games in 2019 and then underwent two offseason surgeries – one a core procedure, the other a dissectomy. In better news for the Mariners, reliever Austin Adams – who underwent surgery on a torn ACL last fall – is set for camp. The 29-year-old Adams may have broken out for the Mariners last season with 32 innings of 3.94 ERA ball and a whopping 14.91 K/9.
  • Giants corner infielder Pablo Sandoval and lefties Tony Watson and Tyler Anderson will all be good to go for camp’s return, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets (1, 2). Catcher Aramis Garcia could be ready to come back in mid- to late August, meanwhile, and reliever Reyes Moronta may be set by then or in September. Sandoval had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow last September; Watson dealt with shoulder issues before spring training shut down; Anderson underwent a procedure on his left knee last summer; Garcia’s still recovering from February hip surgery; and Moronta’s on the mend from the right shoulder surgery he had in September.
  • Rangers left-hander Joely Rodriguez is back to throwing after suffering a lat strain in April, but he won’t be ready for the start of the season, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. Rodriguez should return at some point during the campaign, though. Texas lured Rodriguez back to the majors on a a two-year, $5.5MM contract in free agency after the former Phillie thrived in Japan from 2018-19.

How Seattle Acquired One Of Its Best Players

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While last season was an injury-shortened wreck for the Mariners’ Mitch Haniger, you can’t dispute that he’s a highly valuable outfielder when he’s able to take the field. Haniger came into his own during his first extensive action in 2017, and he was a deserving All-Star during the next season, in which he hit .285/.366/.493 (137 wRC+) with 26 home runs and 4.5 fWAR. With three years of control left, Haniger could either continue to serve as a key Mariner or re-emerge as a desirable trade chip, leaving the M’s in a good spot in both cases.

As for how Haniger became a Mariner, we can start by revisiting the 2011-12 offseason. Prolific slugger Prince Fielder, a Brewer from 2005-11, reached the open market after the last of those seasons. He was a Type A free agent, which is a concept that’s now extinct in the majors, but losing Fielder entitled the Brewers to a compensatory pick in the 2012 draft. They did indeed see Fielder depart, as he went to the Tigers on a nine-year, $214MM contract. That left the Brewers with the 38th overall pick, which they used on Haniger.

While Haniger was a decent minor league hitter at the lower levels in the Milwaukee organization, he never played in the majors with the Brewers. They instead traded Haniger and left-hander Anthony Banda (now a Ray) to the Diamondbacks at the July 2014 deadline for outfielder Gerardo Parra. The Brewers didn’t make the playoffs that year or the next one – Parra was on their roster both seasons – and they traded him to the Orioles for righty Zach Davies at the 2015 deadline. Davies was effective as a Brewer from 2015-19, though they dealt him to the Padres in a four-player swap that delivered infielder Luis Urias and lefty Eric Lauer to Milwaukee over the offseason.

So, in the wake of the Parra trade, how did Haniger end up in Seattle? Let’s go back to November 2016, when the D-backs sent him, infielder Jean Segura and righty Zac Curtis to the Mariners in a blockbuster trade for infielder/outfielder Ketel Marte and righty Taijuan Walker. Segura’s now a member of the Phillies, who acquired him from the M’s in a December 2018 that brought shortstop J.P. Crawford and some guy named Carlos Santana to Seattle (though Santana never played for the club). Marte has turned into a superstar in Arizona, meanwhile, Walker’s now back in Seattle after a couple injury-ruined years in the desert, and Curtis is out of baseball.

This goes to show how much one team’s decision – in this case, the Brewers letting Fielder go in free agency – can affect the league. Had the Brewers simply re-signed Fielder, which was out of the question for the low-budget team, you never know what would have happened to any of the aforementioned clubs or players. Milwaukee’s inability to keep Fielder did lead Haniger to Seattle, which is no doubt pleased to have him in the fold for at least the next few seasons, but it did lose Marte when it acquired him.

Jerry Dipoto Discusses Austin Adams, Mitch Haniger

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Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto provided updates on the recoveries of a pair of injured players (via Greg Johns of MLB.com). Right-handed reliever Austin L. Adams is progressing well in his rehab from surgery to repair a torn ACL. While Adams was placed on the 60-day injured list in February, Dipoto said there’s now a real chance he could be ready whenever MLB returns from the coronavirus hiatus (assuming it does at all this season). As MLBTR’s Steve Adams explored in detail last week, the relatively unheralded 28-year-old quietly emerged as a relief weapon for manager Scott Servais last season.

Unfortunately, progress seemingly hasn’t been as rapid for outfielder Mitch Haniger. He’s still limited to walking and exercise as he recovers from a pair of offseason surgeries, Dipoto told Johns. The GM stressed that Haniger did not suffer a further setback; rather, his ramp-up was always expected to be slow. There’s still no timetable on his potential return.

The 29-year-old Haniger had emerged as a key long-term asset for the Seattle organization before myriad injuries over the past year knocked him off course. From 2017-18, Haniger hit .284/.361/.492 with 42 home runs (134 wRC+). He’ll be looking to bounce back after a ruptured testicle limited him to 283 plate appearances last year.

7 AL West Hitters Looking For Bounce-Back Years

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As the season draws closer, we’ll be examining several prominent players around the majors who are hoping for bounce-back years. Let’s start with a group of well-known American League West position players whose numbers dipped dramatically in 2019…

Justin Upton, LF, Angels: The 32-year-old Upton has been terrific for the majority of his career (otherwise, the Angels wouldn’t have given him a five-year, $106MM guarantee after 2017), but last season was a nightmare. A foot injury kept Upton out until June, and his season ended prematurely in September on account of a right knee issue. When Upton was healthy enough to take the field, he batted a disappointing .215/.309/.416 with 12 home runs and a career-worst 30.5 percent strikeout rate (5 percent worse than his lifetime mark). Compared to 2018, his fly ball percentage and launch angle went way up, but his average exit velocity dropped almost 4 mph, and his hard-hit rate plummeted. The banged-up Upton was even worse in left field, where he accounted for minus-13 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-5.2 Ultimate Zone Rating. Upton recently told Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register that he’s healthy and aiming for a rebound. The Angels will likely need one from him if they’re going to break a five-year playoff drought; if they get one, Upton should form a lethal offensive quartet with Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon and Shohei Ohtani.

Andrelton Simmons, SS, Angels: Like his teammate Upton, Simmons missed a significant number of games last year because of injury issues. Ankle troubles limited Simmons to 103 games, his fewest since 2012, and his effectiveness at the plate waned compared to the prior couple years. While Simmons has never been an offensive force, the defensive maven’s slightly above-average work with the bat from 2017-18 helped him combine for 10.4 fWAR in that span. Simmons only put up a .264/.309/.364 line in 424 PA last year, though he did continue to avoid strikeouts (8.7 percent), and his wizardry in the field helped him to a respectable 1.7 fWAR. However, he still finished near the bottom of the majors in several key offensive Statcast categories. For instance, Simmons’ xwOBA (.265) ranked in the bottom 2 percent of the league and fell 59 points from 2018. The ankle may have been holding Simmons back, but regardless, a return to form in 2020 would aid the Angels and the pending free agent’s bank account.

Khris Davis, DH, Athletics: Yet another injury case from 2019, Davis’ normally elite power was sapped during a season in which he fought hip, oblique and hand problems. After three straight 40-home run seasons (and four in a row in which he hit .247), he finished with a .220/.293/.387 line and 23 HRs over 533 PA. His ISO sunk like a stone, going from .302 in 2018 to .166 last year, and his hard contact went way down in the process. The 32-year-old has already been slowed by a calf injury early in camp, but indications are that it’s minor. Oakland will need that to be the case, especially considering the commitment the low-budget club made to Davis before last season. It still owes him $16.75MM on a two-year, $33.5MM contract that hasn’t worked out for the team so far.

Stephen Piscotty, RF, Athletics: The missed time theme continues. Piscotty’s 2019 ailments ranged from frightening (a melanoma on his right ear) to more conventional (knee and ankle injuries). The 29-year-old made just 93 appearances as a result, and he didn’t produce like the big-hitting, 3.0-fWAR player he was in 2018 when he did play. Piscotty hit .249/.309/.412 with 13 homers and 0.6 fWAR in 393 PA, though his hard-hit percentage and average exit velocity both increased. There may be hope for return to his career-best output, then, but Piscotty will first have to get over yet another health issue. He’s dealing with an oblique/rib cage injury that could jeopardize his status for Opening Day.

Mitch Haniger, RF, Mariners: Haniger was quietly great in 2018, but his playing time and his numbers sagged last season. He sat out 99 games after suffering a ruptured testicle at the beginning of June, didn’t play again after that and still hasn’t returned to health. Haniger just underwent his second surgery in the past few weeks – a microdiscectomy on his back – leaving it up in the air when he’ll debut in 2020. The 29-year-old is the Mariners’ best player, though, and if they can get a healthy version back sometime in 2020, he’s as logical a bounce-back candidate as anyone.

Mallex Smith, OF, Mariners: Smith looked like a quality pickup for the Mariners when they acquired him from the Rays after the 2018 campaign. At that point, the speedster was coming off a 3.5-fWAR, 40-steal showing in Tampa Bay. Smith amassed even more stolen bases in is first year in Seattle (46), but the rest of his stats tanked. The 26-year-old hit a weak .227/.300/.335 in 566 trips to the plate, while his defensive output was similarly poor (minus-12 DRS, minus-9.5 UZR).  The combination of subpar offense and defense led to a replacement-level fWAR for Smith, who also fell victim to a massive decline in batting average on balls in play. He logged an inflated .366 BABIP in ’18 and a .302 mark in that category last season, which partially explains the drastic difference in year-to-year production.

Rougned Odor, 2B, Rangers: If you’re a Rangers fan (or even part of the organization), you may be tired of Odor’s inconsistency. He has been a 2.0-plus-fWAR player three times in his career, most recently in 2018, but a replacement-level or worse performer twice. That includes last season – even though Odor walloped 30 homers, he was only able to slash .205/.283/.439 in 581 tries. Along the way, the left-handed Odor posted his worst strikeout percentage (30.6) and was eaten alive by righty pitchers, who held him to a dismal .190/.260/.417 line. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that Odor was much better in the second half of the season, ending the year with a flourish after general manager Jon Daniels expressed frustration with his production in late August. The Rangers still owe Odor $36MM through 2022, making it all the more important for the club to receive at least passable production from him.

Latest On Mitch Haniger’s Injury

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Mitch Haniger has undergone two surgeries in the past several weeks — core surgery and a microdiscectomy — and while there’s no clear timetable on his return to the diamond, the Mariners’ right fielder offered some additional context on his injury today while speaking to reporters. MLB.com’s Greg Johns tweets that Haniger can’t do any lifting or much activity at all for the first month following the microdiscectomy on his back. Haniger fully expects to play in 2020, tweets Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, but he’s limited to walking as his only means of exercise at the moment.

Suffice it to say, that’s not a great outlook and doesn’t bode well for a return in the early portion of the 2020 season. After that initial month has elapsed, Haniger will surely need to build up some strength before returning to full baseball activities, and he will of course need an eventual minor league rehab assignment to get up to game speed.

The level of escalation in Haniger’s injury troubles has been stark. The 29-year-old (28 at the time) sustained a ruptured testicle when he fouled a ball into himself last June. That alone is gruesome enough, but Haniger revealed today that he tore the adductor muscle attachment last summer while rehabbing that injury (Twitter link via Divish). That issue went undiagnosed, leading to the herniated disc in his back and the microdiscectomy that is now limiting him to a walking regimen. (Haniger also provided Divish with a more … colorful? … description of the injury, courtesy of his surgeon.)

That sequence of events — particularly the lack of diagnosis on the adductor issue — will surely be a frustrating revelation for Mariners fans, but Haniger explained today that he felt healthy all offseason long and only incurred a setback upon resuming baseball activities.

With Haniger on the shelf for an indeterminate period of time, the Mariners will have themselves something of a competition in right field. Jake Fraley, Braden Bishop, waiver claim Jose Siri and non-roster invitee Carlos Gonzalez will all be in the mix for playing time alongside projected left fielder Kyle Lewis and center fielder Mallex Smith.

Mitch Haniger Undergoes Surgery

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11:09pm: Haniger underwent a discectomy, which “removes part or the whole intervertebral disc,” Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes.

8:50pm: Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger underwent surgery on Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports. It’s the second procedure Haniger has undergone since he had core surgery three weeks ago. It’s unclear when he’ll be able to come back, but there will be a significant delay to the start of his season, according to Passan.

Haniger was already set to miss a major chunk of time after his previous surgery. As of Jan. 23, he was supposed to sit out six to eight weeks, which would’ve kept him out for at least the beginning of the season. Last week, though, general manager Jerry Dipoto didn’t seem sure when the Mariners would get Haniger back, saying, “We have no expectation on his timeline until we actually see him live [at Spring Training].”

Dipoto didn’t rule out an early season return or a mid-year debut for Haniger, and now uncertainty continues to abound in his case. It’s awful news for Haniger, who already missed 99 games in 2019, as well as a Mariners team that will have to continue trudging on without arguably its best player.

While the 29-year-old Haniger wasn’t as productive in 2019 as he was during the previous two seasons, in which he posted star-caliber offensive production, he still put up above-average numbers at the plate. His batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage experienced precipitous drops, but Haniger’s .220/.314/.463 line in 283 plate appearances was nonetheless 6 percent better than the MLB mean, per FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric.

Had he gone through a healthy offseason, Haniger – who has three years of team control left – could have served as an appealing trade chip for the Mariners. That’s obviously not going to happen in the near future, though, and it’s now up in the air whether he’ll have much of a chance to rebuild his value before this July’s trade deadline.

Dipoto On Mitch Haniger Injury

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Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto discussed the uncertainty surrounding key outfielder Mitch Haniger, as MLB.com’s Greg Johns reports. Haniger recently underwent a core muscle procedure.

That surgery came as quite a disappointment. Haniger missed a big chunk of the 2019 season owing to an exceedingly unfortunate injury to a sensitive area. He struggled thereafter to get back to full speed, but the hope had been that an offseason of rest would allow for a complete recovery.

Dipoto had said that Haniger was likely to require a six to eight week recovery period. But it now seems the Seattle GM is walking back any expectations for a clear timeline.

While he emphasized that the belief remains that the recent procedure “was successful,” Dipoto says the club won’t count on Haniger to return any particular point.

“We’re just fingers crossed,” says Dipoto. “We have no expectation on his timeline until we actually see him live [at Spring Training]. We’re not going to push him. Mitch will return at his own pace. Whether that is some time around Opening Day or sometime around the middle of the season, I have no idea.”

It isn’t clear whether some change in the outlook prompted Dipoto’s comments. Regardless, it’s a rough situation for player and team. Haniger, who is a .267/.348/.480 hitter through 1,499 career plate appearances, is (when at full health) one of the M’s most valuable players. He’s set to earn just north of $3MM this year through arbitration and remains under team control through 2022.

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