Mitch Garver’s run in baseball is over.
The former Seattle Mariners catcher announced Thursday on Instagram that he is retiring after 10 seasons in the major leagues at age 35. In his post, Garver thanked his teammates, coaches, wife and agency. He didn’t single out any club by name, but the photo montage he shared included images from his time with the Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers and Mariners.
Garver also made clear where he wants to spend more of his time now: as a dad, a husband and a golfer. In the comments, current Mariners pitcher Bryce Miller called him a future manager.
Garver’s Seattle stint never fully matched the size of the deal that brought him there. Before the 2024 season, he signed a two-year, $24 million contract with the Mariners, which stood as the biggest free-agent commitment Jerry Dipoto had made to a hitter until Josh Naylor’s five-year deal last offseason.
The first season was rough. Garver hit just .172 with 15 home runs in 2024, and the offense Seattle hoped to build around him never really materialized.
He came in as a middle-of-the-order bat and designated hitter, but the role slipped away as the season went on. Eventually, he became the backup catcher behind Cal Raleigh.
He filled that same job in 2025, while also getting at-bats as a DH against lefties, and his numbers were steadier as Seattle won the American League West and reached the American League Championship Series. Garver hit .209 with nine homers and 30 RBIs, with an OPS+ of 85.
After the 2025 season, he was back on the market as a free agent. Seattle brought him back on a minor league deal during spring training, and he made the roster after the Mariners moved on from Andrew Knizner.
But the bat never really came around. Garver hit .175 with four home runs in 50 games before Seattle designated him for assignment.
He then landed with the New York Yankees, though he never got into a big league game for them.
For Seattle, his time was mostly uneven, but it wasn’t empty. Garver delivered a walk-off home run against the Atlanta Braves in 2024, one of the cleaner highs in a Mariners tenure that otherwise fell short of expectations.
Even so, he left a mark in the clubhouse. His ability to shift roles, help younger players and speak the language of the game earned him respect from teammates, and that’s the kind of thing that can stick long after the numbers fade. That’s part of why Miller’s “future manager” comment lands so naturally.
Now Garver is done playing. First, though, there’s always the golf course.
In Other News...
Mariners Face A Tough Trade Call On A Much-Needed Defensive Fix
The Mariners are once again looking at a familiar trade-market question: how much should they be willing to pay for a player who could solve a glaring need on the roster? According to a report from Robert Murray at FanSided, Steven Kwan is expected to be available after Clevelands ALCS exit, and the appeal is obvious for Seattle. He is a four-time Gold Glove winner with a reputation for elite outfield defense and steady production at the plate, the kind of player who can raise both the floor and the ceiling of a club trying to tighten up its run prevention.
The hesitation is just as real, because this would not be a simple rental-style add for a contender. Kwan is entering the final year of arbitration before reaching free agency, which gives any acquiring team a relatively short window to maximize the return. For the Mariners, the bigger question is whether the price in prospects and long-term flexibility would be worth it for a player who fits so neatly on paper, even if the fit comes with real cost. [Read more 🡒]
Mariners Fans Just Got A Brutal Reminder About That Offseason Trade
Ben Williamson is the kind of player Mariners fans expected to forget after he was shipped to Tampa Bay in a February three-team deal, but his name is back in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons in Seattle. Williamson gave the Rays defensive help down the stretch, and Tampa Bay rode that roster to the American League pennant and a trip to the World Series, a run that has only sharpened the hindsight around a trade the Mariners once viewed as a way to reshape the roster.
Seattles side of the move has not offered much comfort. The Mariners did acquire Brendan Donovan in the deal, but injuries kept him on the field for only 39 games, leaving the club with little to show for a transaction that now looks even tougher in October. For a team that missed the playoffs in 2026, watching a former piece thrive while the return was constantly unavailable has made the trade sting all over again. [Read more 🡒]
Why Mariners Fans Actually Have A Rooting Interest In This World Series
The World Series that opens in Milwaukee carries a little extra interest for Seattle fans, even with neither club wearing Mariners colors. The matchup between the Brewers and Rays includes several players with Northwest connections, starting with Tampa Bay pitcher Drew Rasmussen, whose path has long made him familiar to local followers, and extending to Brewers first baseman and outfielder Jake Bauers, whose name still rings a bell around these parts.
There is also a deeper Seattle angle tucked inside the series, with Milwaukees baseball roots tracing back to the old Seattle Pilots. Add in Rays reliever Cam Booser and Brewers second baseman Brice Turang, both of whom have drawn attention for their recent work, and this becomes more than just a neutral Fall Classic for Mariners fans. The unresolved question is whether that Seattle thread can run all the way through October, or stop just short of something the city has never seen before. [Read more 🡒]