The Mariners traded catcher Harry Ford to the Nationals earlier at the moment as a part of a deal for lefty reliever Jose A. Ferrer. Within the wake of that transfer, the membership is open to a reunion with free agent Mitch Garver, in response to Adam Jude of the Seattle Instances.
Garver, who turns 35 in January, simply performed out the ultimate season of a two-year, $24MM deal initially signed in December 2023. On the time, the Mariners envisioned him as a major DH and a backup to Cal Raleigh behind the plate. Garver didn’t reside as much as these expectations on offense, nonetheless, as he posted an 88 wRC+ in 720 plate appearances throughout 2024-25. His contract contained a $12MM mutual possibility for 2026, although the membership unsurprisingly declined their finish of the choice final month, as an alternative paying Garver a $1MM buyout and making him a free agent.
In 2025, Garver batted .209/.297/.343 with an 86 wRC+ in 290 plate appearances throughout 87 video games. He shaved a couple of factors off his strikeout charge, going from 30.9% final 12 months to 27.6% this 12 months, whereas his stroll charge declined barely from 12.3% to a still-above-average 10.3%. His offensive output was kind of a repeat of 2024, when he posted an 89 wRC+ in 430 plate appearances. That form of manufacturing isn’t unreasonable for a backup catcher, though it’s not what the Mariners anticipated from Garver, who was thought-about a bat-first participant on the time of his signing and was coming off a 2023 season with the Rangers wherein he posted a 142 wRC+ with 19 house runs.
Defensively, Garver began 42 video games behind the plate this 12 months, masking 376 2/3 innings. Whereas Raleigh was price 2 Defensive Runs Saved this 12 months and graded out because the third-best pitch framer amongst certified catchers, Garver was price -6 DRS and was thought-about a below-average framer. He additionally drew unfavorable marks from Statcast on his blocking and caught stealing charges, whereas his common pop time was in simply the 4th percentile. In reality, Garver has by no means been a powerful defender. He final graded out positively by DRS within the COVID-shortened 2020 season. It’s unlikely that his protection will enhance as he performs into his mid-30s.
At this level, any signing group must hope for an offensive rebound. That mentioned, there are some encouraging indicators in Garver’s offensive profile. He posted a hard-hit charge of 46.9% in 2025, a full six factors above the league common of 40.9%. He additionally introduced up his common exit velocity to 91.5 mph after sitting at 89.9 mph in 2024. For Garver, the important thing will likely be boosting his efficiency in opposition to four-seam fastballs. He posted a 163 wRC+ in opposition to the pitch in 2024 however only a 77 wRC+ in opposition to four-seamers this 12 months. Some decline is pure for a participant of his age, although it’s additionally truthful to anticipate optimistic regression given his monitor document.
A lower-cost reunion with Garver would make sense for the Mariners. With Ford now traded to the Nationals and catching prospects Luke Stevenson and Josh Caron solely at Single-A, there isn’t a clear backup to Raleigh on the roster. With the $12MM mutual possibility having been declined, a one-year deal for $6-8MM could be an inexpensive sum to re-sign Garver for that position. RosterResource presently pegs the Mariners for a $151MM payroll in 2026, with about $15MM to go earlier than they match their 2025 spending.
Photograph courtesy of Dan Hamilton, Imagn Pictures
