Garver started at catcher and went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in Thursday's 5-3 win over the White Sox.
Garver's fourth-inning home run traveled 457 feet at a rate of 111 mph, as the Rangers' fought back after falling in a 3-0 hole in the first inning. It was the longest homer of his career and the longest blast by any Ranger this season, per Jose Sanchez Cordova of the Dallas Morning News. It was the catcher's second homer of the series -- he hit a tie-breaking homer on Tuesday. Garver, who owns a modest five-game hit streak, has caught four of the six games since Jonah Heim (wrist) landed on the injured list.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Goes deep in victory
Rotowire
Garver went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 2-0 win over the White Sox.
Garver got the scoring started in the fifth inning, smashing a solo shot off Jesse Scholtens to give Texas the lead. The 32-year-old has started each of the last seven games for the Rangers, going 6-for-18 with two homers, four RBI and four runs scored during that span. Garver should continue to see regular playing time with Jonah Heim on the injured list.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Fills in for Heim
Rotowire
Garver started at catcher and went 0-for-2 with a walk in Friday's 7-1 loss to the Padres.
Garver is set to amp up his catching appearances after Jonah Heim suffered a wrist injury during Wednesday's game. Heim is hoping to put off surgery until the offseason with 2-to-3 weeks of rest, but even if he can, Garver should see a steady uptick in plate appearances in the short term. He's served mostly as a designated hitter in 2023, but Garver maintains he's more productive when catching, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports. Evidence suggests he has a point. Garver has a career .856 OPS as a backstop and .673 as a DH. He and Sam Huff will share the role going forward, and the Rangers acquired Kevin Plawecki from San Diego on Friday and assigned him to Triple-A Round Rock.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Launches late homer
Rotowire
Garver went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Astros.
The 32-year-old clubbed a two-run homer during the ninth inning off Houston closer Ryan Pressly, but Leody Taveras quickly followed with a lineout to end the game. It's the third straight game with a hit for Garver, though he's still just 3-for-16 since the All-Star break.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Getting start at catcher
Rotowire
Garver will start at catcher and bat sixth in Monday's game against the Rays.
It's just his fifth start over the Rangers' last 13 games and the third time he's been at catcher over that stretch. Jonah Heim is getting a day off while Garver calls pitches for Dane Dunning.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Drives in four in Boston
Rotowire
Garver went 2-for-2 with two walks, a double, a home run and four RBI in Tuesday's 6-2 win over the Red Sox.
While his defensive performance was a little shaky -- he got charged with a passed ball and a catcher's interference call -- Garver's bat supplied most of the fireworks for the Rangers, including a three-run shot off Kaleb Ort in the second inning. The homer was his first in a month, and the 32-year-old slashed a tepid .214/.290/.286 during his 16-game power drought. On the season, Garver's batting .256 with four homers and 17 RBI in 24 contests.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: On bench Sunday
Rotowire
Garver is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Astros.
It's the second straight game on the bench for Garver, who posted a .237/.308/.356 slash line over 16 games in June. Josh Smith is batting ninth as the designated hitter Sunday.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Not starting Saturday
Rotowire
Garver isn't in the Rangers' lineup Saturday against the Astros.
Garver collected hits in his last two starts but has now sat two straight games. Jonah Heim will start behind the dish Saturday, and Ezequiel Duran will serve as the DH.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Out of Sunday's lineup
Rotowire
Garver is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees.
Garver started the past two games and will take a seat after he went 2-for-8 with a walk and an RBI. Jonah Heim is working behind the plate while Adolis Garcia serves as the designated hitter.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Sits down Wednesday
Rotowire
Garver isn't in the Rangers' lineup Wednesday against the White Sox.
Garver is 4-for-20 with three RBI and two runs scored over his last five contests and will catch a day off Wednesday. Ezequiel Duran will serve as Texas' designated hitter in Garver's place, allowing Travis Jankowski to start in left field while batting eighth.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Gets breather Tuesday
Rotowire
Garver is not in the starting lineup Tuesday versus the White Sox.
Garver will get a breather after he went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a strikeout in Monday's victory. Ezequiel Duran will slot in at designated hitter while Travis Jankowski enters the lineup in left field and bats eighth against Chicago.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Not in Saturday's lineup
Rotowire
Garver will be on the bench for Saturday's game against Toronto.
Garver was starting regularly after returning from a knee injury at the beginning of June, but he's now been on the bench for five of the last eight games. Jonah Heim continues to handle a heavy workload behind the plate, while Robbie Grossman will get the start as the designated hitter.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Sitting Thursday
Rotowire
Garver isn't starting Thursday against the Angels.
After a hot start since returning from a knee injury, Garver has cooled down considerably, slashing just .214/.214/.357 across his last four games. Robbie Grossman will instead serve as the Rangers' designated hitter Thursday while batting seventh.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Heads to bench
Rotowire
Garver will sit Saturday against the Rays.
Garver has started four games at designated hitter and one behind the plate since returning from a knee injury on June 2, going 6-for-20 with a homer and nine strikeouts. He'll sit for the second time in three games Saturday, with Ezequiel Duran serving as the designated hitter.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Taking seat Wednesday
Rotowire
Garver is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.
Garver will get a day off after he went 6-for-16 with three extra-base hits and a pair of walks while starting each of the past four games. Though Jonah Heim is entrenched as Texas' top option behind the plate, Garver should remain the Rangers' preferred designated hitter while he's wielding a hot bat.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Mitch Garver has been hurt far more than he's been healthy over the past three seasons, which makes it hard to know what to expect on those rare occasions when he's healthy. But what I can say for sure is that he's started all four of the Rangers' games since returning from a sprained knee, picking up catcher eligibility along the way. And he's doing what he needs to do to stay in the lineup, hitting a 113-mph double Tuesday to make him 6 for 16 (.375) with a home run and two doubles since returning. Catchers who can hit are few and far between, so Garver immediately becomes a player of interest in two-catcher leagues. And if you look up and down the Rangers' lineup, the run and RBI totals are insane. If Garver continues to get everyday at-bats, he could factor even in one-catcher leagues.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Gets third straight start
Rotowire
Garver will bat seventh as Texas' designated hitter in Monday's game against the Cardinals.
Garver will serve as the Rangers' DH for the third straight game and looks as though he'll be the team's favored option at that spot in the lineup over Robbie Grossman, who is on the bench for the third time in five contests. The Rangers are carrying Sandy Leon as a third catcher on the roster, so even while he's seeing steady playing time, Garver won't necessarily be manager Bruce Bochy's first choice to spell Jonah Heim behind the plate.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Returns with bang
Rotowire
Garver started at designated hitter and went 2-for-5 a solo home run and an additional run scored in Saturday's 16-6 win over the Mariners.
Garver made his first appearance with the Rangers since April 8 after being activated off the injured list Friday. Between serving as a designated hitter and operating as a backup option at catcher behind Jonah Heim, Garver should be able to hold down at least a semi-regular role now that he's healthy again. Depending on fantasy league rules, Garver may not yet qualify as a catcher in 2023 after logging only 14 starts behind the plate in 2022 and three so far this season.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Activated from injured list
Rotowire
Garver was activated from the 10-day injured list Friday.
Garver has been on the shelf since early April with a knee injury but has been cleared to return following a successful rehab assignment which saw him go 6-for-19 with a pair of home runs in six games. Jonah Heim will remain the Rangers' primary catcher and Sandy Leon is still on the roster, but Garver should see a good number of starts at designated hitter while also being mixed in at catcher.
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Rangers' Mitch Garver: Plays full game
Rotowire
Garver (knee) served as the designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with a walk for Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.
This was the first time during his rehab that Garver has played a full game, albeit as a DH. Texas manager Bruce Bochy said Garver would play another two or three games while on rehab this week, per Matthew Postins of SI.com, citing a report in the Dallas Morning News. The club would like to see him play a nine-inning game, presumably in the field, before activating him. Garver's activation is lining up for when the Rangers return from a road trip to open a weekend series against Seattle on Friday.
