Mariners Release Mitch Garver, Rob Refsnyder

The Mariners have released catcher Mitch Garver and outfielder Rob Refsnyder, per Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. Refsnyder will be replaced by Taylor Ward, who was acquired in a trade yesterday. Catcher Jhonny Pereda will be recalled to replace Garver. Ted Schwerzler of minnesotasportsfan.com previously reported that Garver and Refsnyder would be bumped off the roster.

Garver and Refsnyder were both offseason signings which didn’t pan out. Garver, 35, isn’t a strong defender behind the plate and needs to hit to provide value. He has done that at times in his career but the past few years have been rough and he hasn’t gotten back on track here in 2026. He has a huge 14.8% walk rate but has also been punched out in 32.9% of his trips to the plate this year. He has a .175/.302/.294 line in 149 plate appearances.

It seems the M’s will turn things over to Pereda, who will now be Cal Raleigh‘s backup. Pereda, 30, still has a modest big league track record but has generally hit well in the minors. That includes a .319/.402/.440 line in Triple-A this year. A .355 batting average on balls in play is helping him out quite a bit but his 11% walk rate and 11.9% strikeout rate are both really strong figures.

Pereda is in his final option year and will therefore be out of options next year. He still has five years of club control remaining, so he could be kept around as the backup again next season, but it’s also possible the M’s look for external additions.

Refsnyder, 35, was a logical signing for Seattle. He has always done well against left-handed pitching, with a .265/.364/.423 line and 119 wRC+ in his career. He had a .302/.399/.560 line and 159 wRC+ in that split with the Red Sox last year. The Mariners have a lefty-heavy lineup, as Cole Young, Dominic Canzone, Josh Naylor, Colt Emerson, J.P. Crawford, Brendan Donovan and Luke Raley all hit from that side. Seattle gave Refsnyder $6.25MM to serve as a complementary bench bat.

That bet has not paid off at all, as Refsnyder has hit .140/.211/.254 on the year. Part of that is due to a tiny .158 BABIP but his 6.2% walk rate is also a huge drop from last year’s 11.5% pace while his strikeout rate has jumped from 25.8% to 28.7%. The M’s decided to skip the platooning and just get an everyday bat in Ward, which has squeezed Refsnyder out of their plans.

With the deadline now passed, a trade is no longer possible, not that Garver or Refsnyder would have had much value regardless. Both have enough service time to reject outright assignments and elect free agency. The Mariners have skipped that formality and have just released the two players. They will be free agents once they clear release waivers, if they haven’t already.

The M’s will remain on the hook for the remainders of their salaries. As mentioned, Refsnyder is making $6.25MM this year. Garver is making $2.25MM. Another club could sign either player and would only have him to pay the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster. That amount would be subtracted from what the Mariners pay.