The Seattle Mariners have signed catcher Mitch Garver to a two-year, $24 million contract. ESPN’s Jeff Passan tweeted that the deal is still pending physical.
Garver won the World Series with the Texas Rangers last season. He batted .270/.370/.500 for the year, turning in 80 hits, 50 runs batted in, and 19 home runs in 296 at-bats. His .270 batting average is the second-highest clip in his career after .273 in 2019 with the Minnesota Twins. He has also won a Silver Slugger Award in 2019 after batting .273/.365/.630 with 31 home runs and 67 RBIs.
BREAKING: Catcher Mitch Garver and the Seattle Mariners are in agreement on a two-year, $24 million contract, pending physical, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 25, 2023
Merry Christmas and happy holidays to him, Mariners fans who get to celebrate an unexpected gift and everyone else.
Aside from batting, Garver had a .991 fielding percentage last season, tallying 214 putouts in 224 defensive chances. He only had two errors in 28 games as a catcher, per Baseball Reference. Garver also played 57 games as a designated hitter and one game as a first baseman for the Rangers in 2023.
He was instrumental in the Rangers’ World Series victory, with three home runs, eight runs, 12 hits, and 14 RBIs in 14 games. He batted .400 in the two games he played against the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Division Series.
Garver has a .252 career batting average coming into the 2024 Major League Baseball season. He started his career with the Twins in 2017 and was traded to the Rangers in 2022 for Ronny Henriquez and Isaiah Kiner-Falefa.
Last year, he underwent season-ending surgery on a torn flexor in his right forearm, cutting his campaign short after 54 games. He played 87 games for Texas in 2023, the third-highest total throughout his career.
Mitch Garver could become the designated hitter for a Mariners squad featuring Julio Rodriguez, Dominic Canzone, Josh Rojas, and J.P. Crawford. He could also push Cal Raleigh for the starting catcher role if he remains healthy.
His two-year deal with the Mariners will push his estimated career earnings to $34 million. Garver earned $3.9 million with the Rangers in 2023 and $3.335 million the year before.
-Lance Fernandez