Kyle Seager set to have surgery on hand, will miss at least April

And Ryon Healy wins the heated third base position battle

After starting third baseman Kyle Seager injured his left hand attempting to make a diving play up the line on Friday, it has been announced that the Mariners will be without the Gold Glove-winner for at least the month of April as he has surgery on an injured tendon located above the knuckle of his middle finger.

With Ryon Healy again penned into the lineup at the hot corner Monday after receiving the nod at the position on both Saturday and Sunday, it appears he’s the club’s short-term solution to opening the season without their longest-tenured position player. Healy, who played exclusively first base throughout his minor league career, made his major league debut as a third baseman, appearing there in all 72 games his rookie season in 2016 and registering a dWAR of 0.0.

While many have speculated that Healy was ticketed for Triple-A Tacoma to open the season while the Mariners juggled Edwin Encarnacion, Jay Bruce, and Dan Vogelbach between the first base and DH spots, all signs seem to point to Healy making the big league club again this season.

Seager is set to have surgery in Phoenix on Tuesday. He’s expected to open the season on the injured list, which will be his first time he’s spent time on the IL (formerly DL) in his career.

Utilityman Dylan Moore will also most likely see an uptick in his playing time as a defensive specialist who can play all around the infield.