PEORIA, Ariz. -- The Mariners announced on Sunday morning that they have released veteran outfielder Mitch Haniger, who was in his second stint with Seattle and entering the final year of a three-year, $43.5 million contract he signed with the Giants prior to the 2023 season.

Haniger, who posted an .817 OPS with 107 home runs for the Mariners from 2017-22, is owed $15.5 million for this season. He hadn’t appeared in a Cactus League game since March 8 due to left shoulder soreness.

“Mitch has been a significant part of Mariners history and will be missed,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in a statement. “The day he arrived for his first Spring Training back in 2017, he established himself as one of the most focused, prepared, and hardest working players I’ve ever been around. We all appreciate the many ways he’s made us all better, on the field and off.”

Haniger also released a statement, in which he reflected on his six seasons with Seattle.

“Putting on a Mariners uniform and playing at T-Mobile Park is something I’ll cherish forever,” Haniger said. “To our fans, my teammates, and everyone a part of this organization, thank you for embracing my family and me. We have so many great memories to look back on.”

Haniger holds a significant place in Mariners history. His finest campaign came in 2018, when he hit 26 home runs with an .859 OPS and 6.5 bWAR and earned an All-Star selection. In 2021, he belted a career-high 39 homers and drove in 100 for Seattle, and in ’22, he helped the franchise reach the postseason for the first time in 21 years.

Haniger’s 60 home runs at T-Mobile Park rank 5th-most in the ballpark’s history. No player in Mariners history has more than Haniger’s eight walk-off hits for the club.

“It’s always tough to lose somebody who has a lot of history with the organization,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “He’s someone who’s really given a lot to the organization. He’s given a lot of himself, and it’s hard to see him leave.

“I personally thank him for what he’s given this organization -- he’s given this organization a lot of leadership over the years and there’s a lot of guys in that clubhouse who have benefited from Hanny and what he’s brought to the team over the course of a lot of years.”

Seattle originally acquired Haniger, along with Jean Segura and Zac Curtis, in a trade that sent Ketel Marte and Taijuan Walker to the D-backs in 2016. Following five seasons with the Mariners, he signed with the Giants prior to the 2023 campaign, and Seattle re-acquired him in a deal that sent Robbie Ray to San Francisco.

Last season, Haniger hit .208/.286/.334 with 12 home runs in 121 games for the Mariners.

Although injuries have plagued him for much of his career, he made an indelible mark in Seattle.

“He was a tremendous teammate,” said shortstop J.P. Crawford, who joined the Mariners in 2019. “He cares a lot about the guys in here and what we do on and off the field. He was kind of like that big brother to me ever since I came in and took me under his wing.

“He means a lot, for sure [to the history of the organization]. He left everything on the table. He was an All-Star and he was on the team when we broke the playoff drought. That should say enough in and of itself.”