Free-agent catcher/designated hitter Mitch Garver has signed a two-year, $24 million deal with the Seattle Mariners, reports ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Garver heads to his age-33 season having established his ability to be a power bat toward the middle of an order while also filling in behind the plate if need be. He’s also been hampered by a litany of injuries in his MLB career. He’s only appeared in more than 100 games once and that was 102 games in 2018. A forearm injury that required surgery held him to 54 games in 2022 and last season he dealt with foot and knee injuries. He appeared in 87 regular-season games, though he also played in 14 playoff games.
When Garver does play, he has huge power. He homered 31 times in just 93 games in 2019 and hit 19 in 296 at-bats during the regular season last year. He slashed .270/.370/.500 last season, good for a 134 OPS+. In his 60 playoff plate appearances, he hit .226, but also homered three times with 14 RBI in 14 games.
Garver is mostly a bat at this point. He caught just 28 times last season and the last time, including the playoffs, was Sept. 2. He only caught 14 times in 2022. Many teams have been going with a three-man setup of starting catcher, backup catcher and then someone else who can handle catching duties in an emergency. That’s where the World Series champion Rangers had him last season and Garver is best served to be used as a DH and emergency catcher moving forward.
The Mariners have Cal Raleigh planted firmly behind home plate, meaning Garver will likely spend most of his playing time at DH while allowing Raleigh some time off when he needs it. After finishing in third place in the AL West last season and just missing out on the final wild-card spot, Seattle needs some oomph in its offense, especially after trading away Eugenio Suárez and Jarred Kelenic.
