Seattle Mariners' Jerry Dipoto Provides Injury Timeline on Jarred Kelenic

Seattle Mariners outfielder Jarred Kelenic is expected to be in the lineup for the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers on Thursday night, per Mariners President of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto.

The Seattle Mariners got a critical update on injured outfielder Jarred Kelenic on Thursday, as Jerry Dipoto told Seattle Sports that he will begin his rehab assignment later that night.

Per Maura Dooley of Seattle Sports:

Jerry Dipoto on @SeattleSports with the latest on Jarred Kelenic "JK is expected to DH tonight in Tacoma. We'll see how many reps or at bats it takes for him to get ready."

Jerry Dipoto on @SeattleSports with the latest on Jarred Kelenic

"JK is expected to DH tonight in Tacoma. We'll see how many reps or at bats it takes for him to get ready."

— Maura Dooley (@Maura_Dool) August 31, 2023

His impending return, whenever it is, will be a big boost to the surging Mariners, who are now 76-57 and own a share of first place in the American League West. Kelenic has been out since the end of July when he broke his foot.

It will be interesting to see how the Mariners divvy up the playing time though, as the team has used Julio Rodriguez, Teoscar Hernandez, Dom Canzone, Cade Marlowe and Dylan Moore out there in Kelenic's absence. Every player has contributed and the team may not want to immediately give every at-bat back to Kelenic.

He's hitting .252 this season with 11 home runs, 45 RBI and 12 stolen bases. He also plays good outfield, runs the bases well and provides solid energy.

The rosters do expand after Sept. 1, so it's not a guarantee that the M's need to send down any of the aforementioned outfielders to accommodate his return.

The Mariners will open up a series with the New York Mets on Friday night. First pitch from Citi Field is set for 7:10 p.m.

The Mets will pitch Kodai Senga while the Mariners haven't announced a starter yet.

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