In a relatively weak free agent class at the catcher position, we could see Mitch Garver draw interest from a few teams despite a poor 2025 season. One team that should be in the mix is the Philadelphia Phillies in case J.T. Realmuto leaves.
Garver is 34 years old as age isn’t on his side at this point. Now if Garver was coming off his 2023 season, his age wouldn’t matter nearly as much.
After back to back disappointing years though, Garver shouldn’t be expecting a massive deal in free agency. Even so, here’s why the Philadelphia Phillies should be interested in Garver.
This is a PREDICTION, not a REPORT
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Mitch Garver Joining Philadelphia Phillies in MLB Free Agency
Per Zac Hereth of Seattle Sports, “Mitch Garver’s tenure with the Seattle Mariners is officially over…The MLB Players Association announced Monday that Garver’s $12 million mutual option for the 2026 season was not picked up, meaning the 34-year-old catcher is now a free agent and can sign with any team starting Thursday. Garver had a $1 million buyout for 2026 in his deal.”
With Garver likely looking for a new home in 2026, the Phillies could make sense. Before diving into the possible team fit though, here’s what Garver has done over the past three years.
Starting in 2023, Garver was great. Garver had 2.3 WAR, 19 home runs, a .270 batting average and .370 OBP with the Texas Rangers. All through just 87 games.
The next year would be spent with the Seattle Mariners where Garver had a major dip in terms of his stats with -0.1 WAR, 15 home runs, a .172 batting average and .286 OBP in 114 games.
Most recently though, Garver had -0.1 WAR, nine home runs, a .209 batting average and a .297 OBP through 87 games. When going a bit deeper into Garver’s Baseball Savant numbers those weren’t encouraging either.
Garver had a -5 Batting Run Value, -2 Baserunning Run Value and a -4 Fielding Run Value. The appeal is that Garver is a veteran catcher who’s had a very good peak and he also has World Series experience under his belt.
How Mitch Garver Fits with the Philadelphia Phillies
As things stand right now, Rafael Marchán is projected to be the Phillies starting catcher (per Fangraphs) going into the 2026 season. With a number of teams interested in Realmuto, it wouldn’t make sense for the Phillies to just assume they’ll be able to bring him back.
In the case that Realmuto does walk, the Phillies aren’t going to want to just rely on Marchán for the 2026 season given that this is a contending roster. Last year Marchán had 0.2 WAR, two home runs, .210 batting average and .282 OBP.
While Marchán is just 26 years old he’s never played in over 50 games at the MLB level. While Marchán showed flashes through 17 games back in 2024 with three home runs and a .294 batting average, there’s a lot of risk that comes with him being the main catcher.
This would be a perfect situation for Garver to step into if Realmuto doesn’t come back. Even if Realmuto does, having Garver as a bench bat isn’t a bad idea either given his playoff experience.
Mitch Garver Stats
Garver has spent nine years in the MLB and he’s had some strong stats over his career. In those nine years Garver has 9.8 WAR, 106 home runs, .233 batting average and a .326 OBP.
At this point signing Mitch Garver wouldn’t be the most exciting move for the Philadelphia Phillies, but if Realmuto leaves it would make perfect sense. Even if Realmuto were to come back, adding Garver could still be beneficial to the Phillies.