Mariners Reportedly Go with Garver for Backup Catcher; Right or Wrong Move by Dipoto?

Mitch Garver already returned to the Mariners organization thanks to some advice from Cal Raleigh, but with Spring Training nearly in the rear-view mirror, it’s being reported that he’s going to make the jump back to the bigs for another year. With this decision, it’s likely that Andrew Knizner - who signed a $1 million guaranteed contract in the offseason - will be designated for assignment, though he can be outrighted to Triple-A if he clears waivers. Jhonny Pereda, who is on the 40-man roster, will probably also return to Triple-A to start the season, though this would mark his last minor league option.

Garver was quite appreciative of Raleigh’s efforts to bring him back, according to MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer.

“It means a lot that he would want me to come back and be there for him whenever he needs to take a breather,” Garver said. “So, I'm happy to do it. Happy to just put on the gear and catch guys when they need me the most and couldn't be [happier] to be where we're at.”

Bringing Garver up was a $2.25 million dollar decision, financially, as that’s what Garver was guaranteed to make if he made the MLB roster at any point. So what went into the decision to bring him back for another year?