Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports that outfielder Mitch Haniger is hoping to return to the Mariners in 2023. Haniger, 32, is a pending free agent following a season where he slashed .246/.308/.429 in just 57 games as he was limited by ankle and back injuries throughout the year. The Mariners, for their part, have been effusive in their praise of Haniger, but have not publicly committed one way or the other regarding a possible reunion.
Divish opines that Seattle may extend Haniger a qualifying offer, and notes that Haniger would likely accept one if offered. The Mariners tagging Haniger with a QO would register as a surprise given his age, extensive injury history, and the depressed market that low-OBP, power-hitting corner outfielders like Haniger have found in free agency in recent years. Furthermore, Seattle is loaded on talent in the outfield, with Jarred Kelenic, Kyle Lewis, Taylor Trammell, and Jesse Winker among the options already under team control for 2023 to man the outfield alongside superstar Julio Rodriguez. With a clear hole at second base and high dollar contracts allotted to the likes of Robbie Ray and Luis Castillo, it’s possible that re-signing Haniger may not be the best use of Seattle’s resources this offseason.
On the other hand, Haniger is a beloved team leader who has been with the Mariners for six seasons, which makes him the longest-tenured player in a clubhouse that has frequently undergone roster churn in recent years. Furthermore, he’s been a reliable contributor offensively whenever he’s been on the field, having posted above-average seasons by OPS+ every season he’s played following his rookie 2016 season, when he played just 36 games. While the Mariners certainly have a plethora of options in the outfield entering next season, none of them (Rodriguez aside) come with Haniger’s track record of productivity. Winker is coming off a down season, Kelenic has struggled in the majors despite his prospect pedigree, Lewis has played just 54 games in the majors since his 2020 Rookie of the Year campaign and badly struggled when he was facing major league pitching in 2022, and Trammell may be better suited as a bench bat than an every day player.
Given all this, a reunion with Haniger could make sense for Seattle, though perhaps not at the level a $19.65MM QO would require. Divish suggests a multiyear deal in the $10-12MM AAV range could make sense, and that seems more plausible, though Haniger may have to resort to a shorter term deal given his injury-marred season in 2022.
‘Seattle is loaded on talent in the outfield, with Jarred Kelenic, Kyle Lewis, Taylor Trammell, and Jesse Winker’
smh…none of those guys have a fan club in Seattle. Most fans want those guys gone. Management speaks highly of them though.
Exactly. Seattle has JRod and a pile of guys you hope can produce but not guys you should count on for a contending team.
I wouldn’t say fine but you can’t rely on them to start right away. Need 1 more established bat out there
@MortDingle, I don’t like any of those guys you have named. Not much there. I think the team really needs Haniger and J P Crawford back for one more year, simply for the stability it gives this youngish team.
As far as the QO, Haniger is worth whatever he asks.
IMHO, that is.
Given JP’s extension from 6 months ago, I think he’s here for more than just 1 more year but I guess you never know.
I hope Mitch is brought back.
This fan doesn’t want ANY of those OFers gone- he just wants them to succeed. The OF market is garbage. If I thought Jesse Winker would find production close to the CIN All-Star version of himself I’d even be ecstatic with him staying in 2023!
Best case scenario Kelenic Hits MLB pitching close to his AAA level and he learns to be less hard on himself. If he puts it all together we have 5 more yrs at a low cost.
Trouble is….the OF options in FA are essentially Aaron Judge and a pool of flawed OFers. Each with ceilings all slightly lower than a healthy Haniger. Its slim pickings.
We’ll probably trade one (or both) of Flexen or Marco AND package one or 2 of our top pitching prospects. Guys like Bryce Miller, Taylor Dollard and Hancock paired with Flexen should net us an impact bat thats better than the 2022 version of the Seattle OFers.
I hope we spend our FA money on Edwin Diaz. Game 1 v HOU showed us as good as our Pen has been if we really want to get past HOU we are 1-2 more elite RPers away
Good thoughts, ayrbhoy, worthy of much discussion. That may very well be exactly how management looks at it all.
Cheers Fred. What a run eh? What a fun and magical season! What a season for Cal Raleigh? Hitting .059 in April, demoted, called back up mid May then hits his first HR in Citi Field off the Mets Drew Smith. He breaks the franchise record for most HRs by a C, hits a walk-off pinch hit HR bottom 9 on a 3-2 count to clinch the playoffs! Then hits a 2R dinger off Alek Manoah in his first AB in the WC game, starts the historic comeback with a dbl off Romano in the 9th scoring the winning run to send them to the ALCS!! All while playing through torn ligaments and a broken thumb! As a Catcher! THEN yesterday he’s voted a Finalist in the Gold Glove Awards. What a yr!
Speaking of broken digits! It’s a pity a few our hitters received injuries in the last 3 weeks of the season. There’s no doubt in my mind the injuries affected the entire lineup. Would it have changed the outcome of the ALDS? Maybe? The offense was certainly pressing in game 2 and 3. Eugenio Suarez was absolutely raking before he broke his finger, he and Julio were carrying that offense at times. Ty France and even JP looked to play through some considerable pain. 2 of the teams best hitters on the IL middle of Sept is really bad luck! The rest of the lineup was clearly pressing while Suarez and Julio were out trying to make up for their absence.
Oh well the team looks to be set up to make a good run in the next 4-5 yrs. Hopefully our boys can learn to lay off HOU’s breaking balls or they will struggle to beat the Astros again next yr. Our Pitching (minus Robbie) certainly seemed to have a decent game plan v their hitters.
Cheers to you, ayrbhoy.
Yes, what a run!
Yours is a perfect summation, as usual.
Julio needs to learn how to hit the slider. Houston worked him perfectly, it seemed to me.
And Cal Raleigh, well I have talked for two seasons about how he seems to come up clutch right when the team needs it most.
As for Kelenic, I don’t expect much at all.
Looking forward to some great seasons!
I think Trammell deserves a shot. He showed more promise than before, anyway. That’s not saying much, though.
If they offer him the qualifying offer he needs to take it. I’d let him walk
Yep. I wouldn’t pay him $19M+ but if they worked a deal for say 2yrs/$20-25M with incentives, that could be a good fit. They still would need an impact middle infielder and probably another bat on top of those moves.
I don’t think the M’s can afford to let him walk without trying to work something out. Free agency isn’t strong in the OF, the farm took a massive hit so getting a solidified OF via trade isn’t likely, and they can’t rely on internal options, especially JK to just figure it out or Kyle Lewis to stay healthy.
They need to take a run at Nimmo and bring Mitch back. I would hate to see the state of the OF next season if Mitch is let go and Winker doesn’t at least bounce back somewhat.
That’s my thought, go hard on Nimmo and bring back Haniger. They need a CF, they are wasting JRods arm, he has a cannon, and hes not quite a CF range wise, even if hes playable for now. Haniger is great insurance against Winker continuing to struggle and wouldn’t be surprised if they traded Kelenic if they do go that route, although they should be careful of that. He feels like a guy that could suddenly be good and could see teams trying to buy low. Trammell and Lewis are decent depth too.
Here’s the problem with Mitch. After inking him to a lucrative deal, he and his wife will be at Target where he’ll get a tricycle down from a high shelf, drop it on his foot, and be out for the season with surgery, He’ll hopefully back and ready for the 2024 0r 2025 seasons. . This is Mitch unfortunately.
I understand how Haniger has received the “injury prone” label but over 50% of his games missed can be attributed to a ruptured testicle, then a setback from a ruptured testicle. It’s unlikely that occurs again.
Give me Haniger and Trea Turner for 2023 and call it a winter.
Turner yes, and Haniger at a reasonable price. The QO isn’t it.
If Dipoto is given the okay, I’d rather have Haniger at $19.65M for one season than $13M AAV for three seasons. Only because we need to see if he stays healthy and, if he doesn’t, financial flexibility is needed to solve RF the following offseason.
That’s why he will have a ton of incentives in his contract. Dipoto will put stipulations in his contract so the next year will vest if he plays so many innings or games
Seems like a very sensible ‘overpay’ for Seattle,
As was clearly demonstrated this year, they don’t really have dependable depth in the OF and can’t afford to take a step backward offensively at any position.
They have been ~50million below their previous budgets for several years now. They have room to pay Haniger for one year and also go after a top tier bat long term. Paying a few million over market for one year shouldn’t be much of a consideration if the alternative is taking a step back offensively.
And improving at 2b isn’t as easy as it seems. Looks at the list of 2b free agents. I think Adam Frazier is in, or near, the top 3.
We need BOTH Haniger and an upgrade in the middle infield. Not signing Mitch kind of means it’s ‘top 4 SS or bust’ for us this offseason. We didn’t have much luck with top tier bats last off season., so I hate hinging an entire offseason’s strategy on signing one of a really small group of top tier SS’s ….especially when we might be asking them to accept a position change. I’d put our chances at getting one of the top 4 at under 25%.
‘Overpay’ for Haniger so we don’t regress offensively in the OF and then we open up many more routes to making smaller improvements elsewhere if top bats go elsewhere. Let Haniger walk and our potential paths to an improved lineup becomes really really narrow.
Or just sign Judge.
yeah….the top 2b is segura who has a bad history with Seattle…..then who..Wong? Drury? Frazier?
Making a huge upgrade from Frazier at 2b isn’t really possible. Only option is to go after a top SS and that’s far from a given no matter how much budget room we have.
I think we sign Mitch, make a strong play for a top SS but also look at ways to improve in unexpected areas. It’s not always easy to just go out and get the FA at the spot you need.
deGrom? deGrom, Castillo, Kirby, Gilbert, Ray would certainly take some pressure off the offense…..plus we have the depth to survive deGrom missing starts.
I’m not against resigning Frazier cheap as backup plan, then trading a prospect arm for a 2B like G. Torres if we can.
I like Wong. Decent offense, good glove.
Everyone is talking about FA to fill in 2b. Trader Jerry,…..
Drury- glove?
Maybe Edman or Adames? Decent bat, good glove, and not $25M+/yr
I would love to upgrade at 2B, but 2023 Frazier is as good a bet to be an upgrade over 2022 Frazier as most of the 2B who are available.
Last year the top SS(mid-infielders) Seattle was targeting weren’t interested in Seattle. Seems that Semion didn’t even bother to acknowledge or respond to dipotos inquiry. Think those that brushed Seattle off wished they took them serious, and those Dipoto will target this off season will have a different perspective and attitude about “playing in Seattle”??
“loaded with talent”- yes.
Performance- no
2-3 years deal, base salary about$8M. Incentives for staying healthy and on the field -upto $13-14m.
When he’s healthy we know he can be a 30+hr/100rbi guy.
Gets paid good if he’s healthy.
If hurt, Seattles payout is less.
I’d extend the QO if it doesn’t prevent them from pursuing the top 4 SS.
If he has another injury riddled season then he’s off the books.
If Mitch leaves I wonder if Conforto makes since coming home. His market will be interesting to watch
*Sign Haniger to a 2-3 year incentive-laden deal (his clubhouse leadership is too important to this group)
*Trade for Brandon Lowe at 2B
Or
*Sign Bogaerts for SS and JP slides to 2B
But of course all sorts of wild scenarios are possible with this M’s Front Office
Plenty of room for Haniger as Santana is a FA and opens up the DH. Pay the man 9-11 AAV up to 3 years, rotate him out to right once a week to rest someone up and call it a win win
Is there room? Do any of Kelenic, Lewis and Trammell still have a minor league option?
plenty of room.
LF Kelenic
CF Rodriguez
RF Haniger
DH Lewis/ Winker (platoon)
Haggerty, Moore and Trammell can fight it out for the bench spots.
The Mariners are not “loaded” in the OF.
Trammel and Kelenic have not showed anything to get excited about yet. They might but people banked on JK to be a star this season and look what that got us.
Lewis can get it done but his health is an issue. It might be best to move him into a primarily DH position to save the wear and tear on his knees.
And Winker….like Frazier he had a down year and we all expeced more. Now there’s word that he is not too engaged with the team dynamic as one would hope.
So that leaves J-Rod and Mitchie the Kid as guys we can count on.
Bring Mitch back.
We can’t count on Haniger
As we see with the Padres and Phillies, team chemistry and the right Manager managing the clubhouse, players and calling the shots is of utmost importance.
Haniger is worth a 2-4 year deal not only for his production, but for all that he brings to the table.
He is a team and clubhouse leader.
Many of those young and up and coming players need players like Haniger
to lead by example and by actions on the field and in the clubhouse.
The Mariners have a good thing going that is only gonna get better.
Don’t mess it up by discarding Haniger over a few millions of dollars per year.
Three years 21 million. Limited trade clause.
Gosh, Remember when Braves fans wanted to give up the entire farm for this guy …. Smh. Fine player, but hasn’t been the player that justifies the prospects our fans wanted to trade to get him. Lol! I recall fans saying trade Riley and a few others, how ridiculous do they look now.
That’s too bad, I was hoping he’d come to the Mets since they need someone like him for OF/DH since canha is not really a FT player, and they could use a power bat… I didn’t see more than like a 2/28 deal for haniger
Don’t worry, Uncle Stevie will hand Judge a blank check and New York will literally explode.
I was completely shocked that Haniger says he’d like to return. In the entire history of baseball, except for maybe the last 1,000 times in a row, no one ever says they want to return.
What’s next? A team saying that they would like to re-sign a player?
Duh?!
Every day there is an article about a free agent wanting to stay with his team. It’s beyond meaningless. Everyone says that.
And every team says they’d like to have their player back. Also meaningless.
Teach him to play first base. It’s not that hard lol
Ty France is embedded at first base.
Teach him to play first base. It’s not that hard lol
Guess repeating comments with multiple user names isn’t either.
Winker and loaded in talent in the OF do not belong in the same article let alone same sentence. I know he had a down year at the plate but if the talk about him not fitting in and/or being lazy are true get rid of him. Seems like releasing him and bite the bullet and count the money better spent not being in the clubhouse.
The OF seemed to be full of enough talent Haniger would be a part time OFer/DH option. I agree Seattle needs him back and should offer the 3-4 year deal. I also wonder if Kelenic needs to be traded. Wonder if a new voice would help him.
I thought it was interesting he got drenched during his interview after a walk off hit. He looked pissed. Then a few games later another player got soaked during his post game interview. Then as they were just about done Kelenic came out and got him again. It was oddly timed and uncomfortable. Kelenic left with a big smile on his face. Hearing about the way he took care of his body and how he trained you would not think he was as immature as he seems. His career will be interesting to follow.
I would love to see the Mariners offer Mitch Haniger something like 2-4 years, maybe in the $12-15 million range. If there is enough concern about his health, maybe something like a base $8 million salary, but thresholds where he can earn up to $15+ million.
I am very interested in how Jarred Kelenic comes back after the winter. He has to realize he was not good this year, his K rate even in AAA was much too high. He has to realize that there is a lot of room for improvement. Does he take this winter to look honestly at himself and his approach, and he makes the correct adjustments to improve next year?
I don’t know if anyone else agrees, but what we saw from Adam Frazier in the Toronto series makes me think maybe he is worth another look. Obviously he did not have the year he wanted, but he showed some signs of the player we were looking for in the Wild Card series in Toronto.
I thought the last third of the season Frazier hit better than the first 2/3. I didn’t look up stats but watching him he looked better. I could see them bring him back for another try. It could be a one year deal with team options.
I completely agree on Frazier. He’s not a star but would easily be a cheap, capable starter. I’d rather not overpay to replace a 2 WAR player with another more expensive 2 WAR player. Buy low on Frazier. I don’t think the Wong’s and Drury;s of the world are much of an upgrade and will cost more.
This is what I’ve been saying to people for the last month. You bring back Frazier because he can play second base, corner outfield and SS if you need it. He’s a huge bounce back candidate. Watch this guy go somewhere and hit like he did in Pittsburgh.
Who’s the goof that started the shoe the their head to spur a rally during the game? Only in Seattle.
He’s interested because he knows he’s not going to get a giant load of money like he was projected after last season. Dude has been hurt and didn’t produce as much. Now from Mariners point of view, might be worth getting back on a lower cost deal. They have a injured, unproductive outfield outside of Julio.
If Haniger doesn’t get a QO I could see the Giants making a play for him. He’s from the Bay Area and can play the OF or 1B or DH and you don’t need to platoon him too much.
Probably should have signed one of the several extensions offered to him. His value is not going to be what he thinks it should be.