Mariners surprisingly release former All-Star

Just days before Opening Day 2025, one former All-Star player is now looking for a new home.

The Seattle Mariners announced Sunday that they have released veteran outfielder Mitch Haniger. The move ends the 34-year-old Haniger’s time in Seattle after eight seasons (spanning two separate stints).

“Putting on a Mariners uniform and playing at T-Mobile Park is something I’ll cherish forever,” Haniger said in a statement provided by the team. “To our fans, my teammates, and everyone a part of this organization, thank you for embracing my family and me. We have so many great memories to look back on.”

The righty-hitting Haniger is a beloved Mariner who put together some great years after being acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks as part of the 2016 Ketel Marte trade. Haniger was an All-Star for Seattle in 2018, hitting .285 with 26 home runs and 93 RBIs. He then followed that up by crushing 39 home runs and 100 RBIs for the Mariners in 2021 and also contributed to the team’s first playoff berth in over two decades in 2022.

But Haniger had lost his luster in more recent years, especially after being reacquired by the Mariners as part of the 2024 Robbie Ray trade with the San Francisco Giants (whom Haniger had signed with as a free agent in 2022). Last season for Seattle, Haniger hit .208 with a .620 OPS (both career lows), managing 12 home runs and 44 RBIs over 121 games while also providing below-average defense in the outfield.

The decision by the Mariners still comes as a surprise since Haniger was owed $15.5 million in 2025 (meaning that they will now have to eat a lot of money in releasing him). But Seattle added some other righty bats this offseason, so they have officially opted to turn the page here on Haniger.