ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi will have arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and is expected to be sidelined at least three to five weeks.

Manager Kevin Cash said Tuesday that the AL champions should have a better idea of how long  Choi might be out after Wednesday’s operation.

“I don’t think anything’s been totally defined on: ‘Here’s the issue.’ We know there is an issue,” Cash said before the Rays’ spring training finale against the Detroit Tigers.

“Right now, the timetable is three to five weeks. … If there’s a loose body in there and they take it out, that’s different than maybe having something else in there.” .

Choi, who hit .230 with three homers and 16 RBI in 42 games last season, was slowed much of spring training by the sore knee. He’s set to earn $2.45 million this year after winning a salary arbitration hearing against the AL champions.

With Choi out, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Yandy Diaz and Mike Brousseau figure to share most of the playing time at first base.

TIGERS: Detroit reassigned infielder Renato Nunez to the team’s alternate training site and reassigned right-hander Wily Peralta to minor league camp.

The Tigers also announced they have reassigned left-hander Ian Krol, right-hander Erasmo Ramirez and catchers Dustin Garneau and Eric Haase to the alternate training site in Toledo, Ohio.

Nunez hit 31 home runs for Baltimore in 2019, then batted .256 with 12 homers in the shortened 2020 season. He was released by the Orioles after last season and agreed to a minor league deal with the Tigers.

Peralta also joined the Tigers on a minor league deal. He hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since 2019, when he was 2-4 with a 5.80 ERA in 42 relief appearances for Kansas City.

BLUE JAYS: Toronto will play its third homestand of the season at their spring training ballpark in Dunedin, Florida, because of COVID-19 restrictions.

Toronto announced Feb. 18 that its first two homestands will be at TD Ballpark and on Tuesday added 10 games from May 14-24 against Philadelphia, Boston and Tampa Bay.

Twenty-two of 81 home games have been switched to Florida from the Rogers Center. Toronto hopes to return home at some point in 2021.

Another possible site for home games is Sahlen Field, home of their Buffalo Bisons Triple-A farm team. The Blue Jays played home games during the shortened 2020 season in Buffalo and were 17-9 there.

The TD Ballpark in Dunedin seats about 8,500 fans and had a major renovation in 2019-20. The Blue Jays intend to limit capacity to 15%.

Toronto last played at 49,000-capacity Rogers Centre on Sept. 29, 2019, an 8-3 win over Tampa Bay.

REDS: Spring training took its toll on the Cincinnati Reds, and some key players who suffered injuries won’t be back in time for Thursday’s opener.

Outfielder Shogo Akiyama (hamstring), and pitchers Sonny Gray (back) and Michael Lorenzen (shoulder strain) will miss the opener but aren’t expected to be sidelined too long after that.

The good news is first baseman Joey Votto, who missed 13 days of spring training with COVID-19, has eased his way back, hit the ball well and looked solid in the field during the final spring training games. He appears to be in position to start on Opening Day for the 13th consecutive season, but that decision has yet to be made.