February 20, 2020 11:30 AM : Haniger (back) said Thursday that he won't be able to lift weights for at least one month following his Feb. 13 microdiscectomy surgery, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. The outfielder is without an official timetable to return to game action.
Analysis: Haniger's availability for Opening Day was already in doubt after he required core-muscle surgery a month ago, but the subsequent back procedure officially ended any chance he had of avoiding the injured list to begin the season. The 29-year-old's recovery from the lower-back operation looks like his primary concern, as doctors haven't cleared him for any activity other than light walking for the first month after surgery. Even if he's cleared to resume weight-bearing exercises by mid- or late March, Haniger would still need to complete his own version of spring training before the Mariners would likely pinpoint a target date for his 2020 debut. At this stage, don't count on Haniger seeing game action until at least May, though he did say Thursday that he remains confident he'll play at some point this season.