As was reported on Friday, the Seattle Mariners are nearing a deal with veteran catcher Andrew Knizner. All indications are that the deal will be a major league one and that he'll serve as the backup to MVP runner-up Cal Raleigh.

If that is, in fact, the case, it will also close the book on the Mitch Garver-era in Seattle. After recently trading projected backup Harry Ford, the speculation was that Garver could return on a modest deal to be Raleigh's backup once again.

And I've got to say, for as frustrating as Garver was to fans over the last two years, they will quickly come to miss him.

Let's acknowledge something

I can't come here outright and say that the Mariners should have re-signed Garver, because we don't know the exact situation at hand. Perhaps they offered Garver a deal. Perhaps he turned it down. Perhaps he wants to go some place where he can be a starter. Perhaps he wanted more money than the Mariners were willing to give a backup. We have no idea of the dynamics behind closed doors. That said, I would rather have Garver than Knizner.

About Knizner

About to turn 31 years old, he's a seven-year veteran of the St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants. He is a .211 career hitter with 19 homers and 90 RBIs. He has a career OPS+ of 67. He is a true backup catcher, and on days he plays, the Mariners offense will be worse. That's not being critical, it's just the truth.

Even if Cal Raleigh stays completely healthy and catches 120 or so games again, the 40 that Knizner plays will be felt by the offensive group.

About Garver

He hit just .187 over two seasons, failing to live up to his two-year and $24 million deal. We all get that. That said? He hit nine home runs this past season, and 15 in 2024. When he steps to the plate, there's always the threat of a homer. That isn't really there with Knizner. Garver also had a .718 OPS against left-handed pitching in 2025, making him a platoon-positive advantage for the M's. Knizner only got 25 at-bats against lefties, and while he hit .280, his .680 OPS was lower than Garver's. For his career? He's just a .167 hitter against lefties.

The backup catcher situation

It's hard for me to fault Knizner, because this is what backup catchers look like. The position is rife with players with numbers just like this, so it's not like the Mariners had a lot of great options.

But they did have one good one - Garver - and fans will come to appreciate him more in 2026 when he's (likely) not here.

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