Mariners expect Haniger to miss start of season

SEATTLE >> This was already going to be a year where the Seattle Mariners would be relying heavily on young players and some of their top prospects right from the beginning of the season.

Now the Mariners expect to be without one of their few veterans — likely for the first month.

Outfielder Mitch Haniger is expected to miss the start of the regular season and likely needs to undergo core muscle surgery, general manager Jerry Dipoto said Thursday.

Haniger suffered the injury during one of his offseason workouts earlier this week. Dipoto said the latest setback is tied to Haniger’s injury issues from last season.

“I was expecting him to show up for the first day of spring training ready to go but that does not appear to be the case,” Dipoto said.

Haniger missed the final

31/2 months of the season after suffering a ruptured testicle and then experiencing back and core issues during his recovery. Haniger was limited to

63 games and batted .220 with

15 homers and 32 RBIs. A year earlier, Haniger was an All-Star after hitting

.285 with 26 homers and 93 RBIs and an OPS of .859.

Dipoto said the hope is that Haniger’s recovery will take about six to eight weeks following the surgery. He could be ready to join the major league club sometime in late April.

Mets make it official, tab Rojas as skipper

NEW YORK >> The Mets made it official, hiring Luis Rojas as their manager to replace Carlos Beltrán.

New York announced the move Thursday, a week after Beltrán departed without managing a game. Rojas, who had been the Mets quality control coach, was given a multiyear contract.

“I will work tirelessly to help this team win,” Rojas said in a statement. “I believe this team and coaching staff can do special things, and I look forward to working together with everyone to reach our goals.”

Rojas became New York’s fourth manager in the past 21/2 years — and third in four months. He is to be introduced Friday at a Citi Field news conference.

Beltrán was let go last week as part of the fallout from the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.

Bloom: Red Sox won’t rush on manager

BOSTON >> The Boston Red Sox are still hoping to have a manager in place by spring training, but chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said it’s possible they won’t hire someone before pitchers and catchers report Feb. 12.

“It would certainly be ideal” to have replaced Alex Cora by then — but not at the cost of rushing the process, Bloom said. “Nobody wants to be at this point in a year without a manager, obviously, so that would become even more important once we get to spring training.”

The Red Sox let Cora go last week after Commissioner Rob Manfred identified him as the ringleader in a sign-stealing scheme when he was the bench coach with the World Series champion Houston Astros in 2017. Major League Baseball is also looking into whether Cora engaged in similar shenanigans after taking over the Red Sox in 2018.

Bloom declined to comment on whether the Red Sox have interviewed anyone; he also would not say whether the team has ruled out internal candidates.