Seattle Mariners first baseman Ryon Healy had surgery to remove a bone spur in his right hand and is expected to be sidelined for four-to-six weeks.
Projected to start after he was acquired from Oakland in November, Healy was operated on Wednesday in Philadelphia Dr. Randall W. Culp in a procedure called a metacarpal boss excision. The 26-year-old Healy hit .271 with 25 homers and 78 RBIs last season.
"We knew there was an issue there. Absolutely the best-case scenario came out of it," Mariners manager Scott Servais said Thursday. "He's shooting for probably even before the four weeks is up."
Daniel Vogelbach and Mike Ford are expected to play first while Healy recovers. Vogelbach played 16 games in the majors with Seattle last season and hit .214 in 28 at-bats. Ford has yet to appear in the major leagues and was selected from the New York Yankees in the winter meeting draft.
Concerns about Vogelbach’s ability to handle the defensive responsibilities at first base on an everyday basis in the big leagues remain an issue for people in the organization. Ford has never played in a big-league game.
“From what I’ve heard, he’ll be game ready in four to six weeks,” Servais said. “I know that’s a big window. But I’m not a doctor, and we’ll have to see how the rehab stuff goes. I know Ryon, and he’s shooting for before the four weeks is up.”
On Wednesday, Servais confirmed that Healy was dealing with a hand injury suffered during offseason hitting and training and said he was undergoing more tests. The tests revealed the spur in the hand, and the decision was made to have surgery.
If Healy’s doesn’t progress as expected, the Mariners could sign an experienced free-agent first baseman. They previously had interest in Lucas Duda, and former Mariners first basemen Logan Morrison, Adam Lind and Danny Valencia are available. But Servais indicated that they aren’t considering that option yet.
“I don’t want to get too far down the road,” Servais said. “We’ve got about six weeks to work out here before we open up (the season), so we’ll keep our fingers crossed that Ryon can get back in the mix.”
