Mitch Haniger out after hit-by-pitch, so Mariners select a Triple-A player for big-league debut

His father reached the NFL with the New England Patriots. Now John Andreoli is a major-league baseball player.

Andreoli spent eight seasons working his way through the minor leagues and thanks to a confluence of injuries, he’s was starting in right field for the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics.

"He plays with a football mentality," Mariners manager Scott Servais told reporters. "He's a very intense dude. We're just going to let him settle in. He knows the guys from spring training, so just kind of stay out of his way today."

But let’s reiterate: a lot of injuries.

Add Mitch Haniger to that list. He was only expected to miss a day after being hit with a pitch off of his right wrist in the Mariners’ extra-innings win Tuesday in Oakland. The Mariners were already without Dee Gordon (fractured big toe) and Robinson Cano (fractured finger/80-game drug suspension).

Oh, and shortstop Jean Segura was icing his left shoulder after scoring the eventual winning run in the top of the 10th inning on Tuesday. He collided with catcher Jonathan Lucroy’s shin guard when he slid head-first into home plate.

But Segura was in the starting lineup on Wednesday, anyway, along with designated hitter Nelson Cruz, who missed Tuesday’s game because of an elbow contusion suffered when he was hit by a pitch in Saturday’s game.

"Hani feels maybe a little better than expected," Servais said. "We'll try to give him (Wednesday), maybe (Thursday). We'll see how he's progressing. It certainly could have been a lot worse."

Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said Wednesday in his weekly interview on 710-ESPN radio said they were deciding whether to select 38-year-old Jayson Werth, a former All-Star with the Washington Nationals, or the 27-year-old Andreoli from Triple-A Tacoma.

But Werth suffered a mild hamstring injury in Tuesday’s Rainiers game.

He was pulled after an RBI double and two at-bats at about the time that Haniger left the Mariners’ game, seeming to indicate Werth was about to get a Mariners uniform.

“Those conversations really did revolve around Jayson Werth and John Andreoli,” Dipoto said. “Obviously, the happenings yesterday made this a lot easier for us.

“Believe me, I would have guessed that most were thinking that way (that the Mariners would select Werth), but that wasn’t the case. Jayson did start to recently heat up with the bat and the timing wasn’t great on this one. But sure did make life a lot easier in making a decision and this came down to John Andreoli and how well he had played.”

Dipoto said recently that Werth can opt out of his minor-league contract by the end of this month if he’s not in the big leagues by then.

So who is John Andreoli?

He’s trudged his way through the minors to finally make his big-league debut, after being drafted in the 17th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2011 first-year player draft.

The right-handed hitter struggled in spring training, but has performed well with Tacoma, hitting .294 with a .353 on-base percentage and three home runs in 32 games. That’s after spending the past three seasons playing for Triple-A Iowa (Cubs) and hitting .244 in 119 games last year.

Andreoli was added to the Mariners’ 40-man roster, which stands at 40 players.

“Couldn’t be happier for him that after a decade in the minor leagues he’s now getting an opportunity to make his big-league debut,” Dipoto said. “This has been a long journey to the big leagues for John.”

He played at UConn and before that at St. John’s High School in Massachusetts for his father, John Andreoli, who played professional football for the Boston Breakers of the USFL and then spent the 1984 season on the injured reserve with the New England Patriots.

His cousin, Daniel Bard, pitched for the Boston Red Sox.

“He’s a great athlete,” Dipoto said. “Above-average runner, well above-average natural strength, plays all three outfield positions, throws above average, has above-average raw power. But his bat gets out of the strike zone. If he has a hiccup it’s his ability to keep the barrel in the zone and handle all different types of pitches. He’s prone to strikeouts, but also willing to walk.

“Last year he was able to turn raw strength and power into over the-fence homers. He’s played well in Tacoma.”

To make room, the Mariners optioned right-handed reliever Dan Altavilla to Triple-A Tacoma.

TJ Cotterill: 253-597-8677

Twitter: @TJCotterill

This story was originally published May 23, 2018 at 5:13 PM with the headline "Mitch Haniger out after hit-by-pitch, so Mariners select a Triple-A player for big-league debut."