Mitch Garver

Did You Know?

• Garver met his wife during their sophomore year of high school; she is a veterinarian who earned her degree from Oregon State University in 2018.
• Their first child was born on July 22, 2021, and their second on December 27, 2023.
• OMNI Brewing released a 'Garv Sauce' beer in 2020 based on Garver's nickname.

Early life

Garver was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and attended La Cueva High School there. He played catcher for the baseball team and center back for the soccer team. His soccer coach suggested he move to England to pursue soccer, but Garver, preferring baseball, declined. In 2008 he helped both teams win state championships, and in 2009 he was named Albuquerque Public Schools Male Athlete of the Year. As a senior he batted .521 with 10 home runs.

College career

Garver walked on to the University of New Mexico baseball team. He played summer ball for the St. Cloud River Bats in 2010 and 2011. As a junior in 2012 he was co-Mountain West Conference player of the year and a second-team All-American. He and teammate D. J. Peterson played for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks in the Cape Cod Baseball League in 2012, where Garver was an all-star. In 2013 they repeated as co-conference players of the year, and Garver set a Lobos record with 181 consecutive starts.

Professional career

The Minnesota Twins selected Garver in the ninth round of the 2013 draft, and he signed for a $40,000 bonus. He played for Elizabethton in 2013, Cedar Rapids in 2014, and Fort Myers in 2015, then spent time with Chattanooga and Triple-A Rochester in 2016. The Twins added him to the 40-man roster in November 2016. He returned to Rochester in 2017, batting .291 with 17 home runs in 88 games. Promoted to the majors on August 18, 2017, he debuted the next day. His first hit came on August 20. In 2018 he became the Twins' primary catcher, batting .268 with seven home runs. In 2019 he suffered a left high ankle sprain in a collision with Shohei Ohtani but still hit 31 home runs in 311 at-bats, winning the Silver Slugger Award. He went 2-for-12 in the ALDS. Traded to the Rangers in 2022, he won the 2023 World Series with them. In December 2023 he signed with the Seattle Mariners.

Player profile

Garver adopted a one-knee-down catching stance in 2019, an approach that became widespread among catchers. He worked with coaches Bill Evers and Tanner Swanson after 2018 to improve his pitch framing of low strikes. Advanced metrics rate him as an average catcher. At the plate he shows strong plate discipline, with a low chase rate and above-average walk rate; in his best seasons he paired this with power, posting an isolated slugging percentage above .230 in three seasons. Injuries, including a concussion, groin contusion, and a forearm injury that ended his 2021 season, have limited his playing time and led him to shift from primarily catcher to primarily designated hitter from 2022 through 2024.