Garver helping Mariners with more than just his bat

PEORIA, Ariz. -- One of the first conversations that new Mariners designated hitter Mitch Garver had upon arriving at Spring Training over a month ago was an enlightening and mostly one-sided confab with Bryce Miller.

When he wasn’t working on his new splitter, Miller spent most of the offseason in reflection of what went right and wrong during his strong rookie season, and Garver, who helped the Rangers win the World Series title, was on the other end of each of Miller’s worst two outings, both at Globe Life Field.

So when the Mariners signed Garver to a two-year, $24 million deal in December, the ever-curious Miller -- and George Kirby, Logan Gilbert and Bryan Woo, for that matter -- explicitly sought the veteran out.

“It's good to know what other teams have on you and how they approach the game,” Miller said. “Texas got me both times out there against him, but I'm a lot better now than I was when I was in Arlington. It's good information.”

This was among many examples that Garver has brought to his new role and team. A primary catcher for most of his seven-year career, the 33-year-old was acquired to be Seattle’s first everyday DH since Nelson Cruz in 2018. He’s brought the unique blend of a veteran who’s won a title and the watchful lens of a backstop, even if he’ll only fill that role sparingly behind Cal Raleigh and Seby Zavala.

“I want to keep him connected to it, because I think he can help us in other ways,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “I also understand why he's here -- he's here to hit in the middle of our lineup.”

Yet, Garver still intends to think and operate like a catcher throughout the year -- much like he did in 2023, when transitioning into a full-time DH behind All-Star Jonah Heim. He regularly caught bullpen sessions of Mariners starting pitchers before Cactus League games began and sits in on all catchers meetings, even with the demands of the gig logging more hours than any position. His locker in Arizona is directly next to Raleigh’s.

“I kind of like it,” Garver said. “It fills my day up. I like watching the pitchers work. I like watching the catchers work. And I'll continue to do that, regardless of catching or not. But being able to get back there and see what our pitchers are going through, the adjustments they're making and then to see it translate in-game kind of takes the dullness out of the in-between at-bats when you're DH'ing.

“So when I'm done with my at-bats, I'll focus on other aspects of the game -- our pitchers, their pitchers, stuff like that -- and then as I get closer to my at-bat, I'll lock back in.”

How can help his new teammates?

“Just reminding them how good they are,” Garver said. “Sometimes -- and this happens to all baseball players -- sometimes you can forget how good you are and you fall back into this trap of doubt and stuff like that. And I'm not saying that's the case with any of our guys, but reminding them how good they are, tools they can use against certain hitters. And I've picked up a few things over the years, especially coming from Texas from the past two, so I have a lot of knowledge of what Texas is going to try to do and how those guys approach facing our guys.”

His acumen has also extended to Mariners position players.

“That's something that you cannot just imitate,” Julio Rodríguez said. “I feel like that's something that you cannot just say, 'Oh, I think the World Series feels like this.’ He knows what it is, and it's pretty good to have somebody that went through those battles.”

In the box score, the early returns on Seattle’s most expensive free-agent acquisition this offseason have been among the team’s best this spring. Garver is 9-for-26 with two homers, three doubles, 10 RBIs, two walks and eight strikeouts in 11 games.

More telling is the professional approach he’s flashed -- the tape-measure homer he crushed against the Giants on Feb. 27, the 3-for-3 day when he consistently worked into hitters counts against the Brewers on March 9 and the first-pitch curveball he sat on for a two-run double against $325 million Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto on March 13.

“He's a great addition to the lineup, makes it a lot deeper,” Kirby said. “And even if he's back there catching, just a lot of experience.”