Mitch Haniger suffers strained oblique
Mariners breakout star Mitch Haniger encountered some bad luck on Tuesday.
The Seattle outfielder suffered a strained oblique during his team’s game against the Detroit Tigers. He appeared to hurt himself on a swing that produced a single in the third, as he was lifted for a pinch runner.
Haniger had been one of the most productive players in baseball prior to his injury. He was 2-for-2 on Tuesday and is hitting .338/.442/.600 this season. He has hit seven doubles and four home runs.
There is no word yet on how much time Haniger could miss, but the Tacoma News Tribune’s Bob Dutton notes that strained obliques typically sideline players for a while.
No word on how severe Haniger's strained oblique is, but that's usually not a short recovery period. Often four weeks and usually more.
— Bob Dutton (@TNT_Mariners) April 26, 2017
The Mariners entered Tuesday’s game 8-12 and last place in the AL West. Losing their most productive player probably won’t help their effort to turn things around.