Mitch Garver is Ready to Go

[Ted Schwerzler]

Despite a pandemic that severely altered expectations for how the 2020 Major League Baseball season would go, Minnesota returned to the diamond with a catching duo expected to turn heads. It didn’t go that way, but hope returns for 2022, and Mitch Garver looks as primed as ever.

After a breakout in 2019 as a member of the Bomba Squad, Garver dealt with an injury that severely limited effectiveness in 2020. While the team took a step backward last year, the New Mexico native returned to the upper-tier among catchers and could be considered as one of the best in the game.

With baseball currently locked out, the Twins backstop hasn’t yet begun the journey to prove 2021 was again the real deal. He’s offered quips on social media, alluding to frustration there is no action, and he’s chomping at the bit with readiness to go.

I recently had the opportunity to catch up with him, and we covered a handful of topics. Here’s what Garver had to say:

Twins Daily: The 2021 season didn’t go as planned, but much of the talent there in 2019 and 2020 remained. What was the toughest aspect of the year?

Mitch Garver: The hardest part was balancing the off-field issues that many of us were dealing with. We lost our bench coach Mike Bell during spring training which affected everyone differently. There was a lot of mourning for him and his family as he was an amazing person and baseball mind. With less than a week until the regular season started, I think many of the guys that played for him really felt the hole that was empty in our organization. Early in the year, there was also a lot of concern with Covid and the social injustices in Minneapolis that were weighing heavy on our team. Covid itself was its own monster because of the strict protocols and the uncertainty of what the virus could be (as you can see from our canceled series with LA and the doubleheaders with Oakland).

TD: You dealt with some unfortunate injuries but more than established yourself as among the best catchers in baseball when you were out there. What led to the offensive resurgence last season?

MG: Baseball is such a funny sport; you can be on top of the world one week and feel like the worst hitter in baseball the next. It's a game of constant physical, mental, and emotional struggles. I had a poor showing in 2020 and didn't quite get off to the start I wanted in 2021, but with the help of our staff, I was able to feel more comfortable in the box and make some adjustments I had been needing to make. It also helps when you have such a potent offense surrounding you that some of the pressure is taken off. 

TD: With the lockout expected since the World Series, how has this offseason been different for you? Has it been challenging to prepare for a season that has an undecided start date?

MG: I think it's been difficult for a lot of guys. We, as players, want to be on the field, and some of the issues we are fighting for are for the greater good of the next generation of players. There has been obvious stalling from the league to get the season started. After locking out the players, the league waited a month and a half to meet us (players) at the bargaining table to get some things worked out. The people it hurts the most are the fans. I feel like baseball is at a really good point right now with some real star players being in their prime. We could be potentially missing out on Ohtani repeating as an MVP, we are yet to see the best of guys like Soto, Bichette, De Grom, and the list goes on and on. These are the players that have changed the game at a level of talent we have never seen before in this sport. As for me personally, my offseason program has been designed with the lockout in mind. I am currently working up to game speed by taking live at-bats and catching bullpens a few times a week. I also get a little more time with my seven-month-old son, Gamble.

TD: Eventually, the sport will return. What are you most looking forward to personally for the 2022 season? What individually would make your year a success?

MG: I know all players look to get back on the field and play the game we love. I try not to set my expectations on reaching statistical goals or accolades. My career has been riddled with some injuries over the past few years, some I can control, and others that are out of my hands. I'm doing my best to prepare my body and mind to be healthy the whole year and be on the field with my teammates. 

TD: How do the Twins get back on top of the AL Central? It’s been fun to see that rivalry with Chicago renewed.

MG: We have one of the best offenses in baseball, and when we are all on the same page, everyone 1-9 can do damage. I think we have some really good young pitching that will take a step forward this year, and I am excited to see them grow as individuals and a staff. The rivalry with Chicago is a fun one; they have a really strong team with a good offensive and a pitching staff to respect. I think we all rise to the occasion to play each other, which makes games pretty fun. 

TD: To wrap it up, what’s the one thing you’re most focused on improving for yourself in the year ahead?

MG: I have come to the point in my career where I know what I need to do each day to be successful. It started in the offseason, and as we approach the season, I am prepared for the year ahead. However many games we get to play this year, I'd like to say I have prepared in a way that allows me to stay on the field. 

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[Mark G]

It sure would be nice to have MG in the lineup every day (or close to it).  Here is hoping he stays healthy and on the field; he sounds like he is in a good place.  God bless, Mitch.

[miracleb]

Oh boy...someone who mentions the death of a coach, social injustice, and covid and reasons for a poor season......is probably in for another poor season.  Hopefully that is not the case here.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

23 minutes ago, miracleb said:

Oh boy...someone who mentions the death of a coach, social injustice, and covid and reasons for a poor season......is probably in for another poor season.  Hopefully that is not the case here.

I must disagree with your conclusion. I can understand Garver's points. He is saying that he and other team members were distracted by really sad and difficult things that happened, which had to be dealt with and which would have affected most of us in distracting ways. I realize that in life, bad and difficult things happen, and we, as humans, try to "keep on keeping on", but the things Garver mentioned were things which could not just be set aside, to be dealt in the off season. I contend delaying grief or internalizing fears is not healthy. A baseball team is close,  like a family. Mike Bell's death was the death of one of the Twins' family.  The team grieved in individual ways and as a team. The George Floyd situation and the resulting events have been difficult for our country, but remember,  Minneapolis was at the epicenter of these events. It must have been on the minds of a close team of young men of different races, different countries and from all walks of life.  I also submit that many of these young men may have had somewhat limited life experiences in some ways. These young men lived together, traveled together, worked together. I expect that they had many serious discussions about life and death, about race and prejudice, about law enforcement's difficult job, which involves huge responsibilities to enforce the law justly, about Covid vaccines and anti-vaxer's, about masks and anti-maskers, about what is really effective in fighting Covid and what is just stupid, about freedoms to choose vs. the safety of all those who dress together, shower together, eat together, travel together, and breathe together and discussions about the political upheaval during an election year, which we Americans experienced in 2021.  I know at my North Carolina law office of 12 fairly homogeneous people, we really struggled with these and other topics last year, including the Covid death of a family member of an employee. This past year was a difficult year for most of us. Hopefully we all have learned some valuable life lessons which will serve us well as we continue on with our lives and face new challenges. 

[strumdatjag]

1 hour ago, miracleb said:

Oh boy...someone who mentions the death of a coach, social injustice, and covid and reasons for a poor season......is probably in for another poor season.  Hopefully that is not the case here.

Agreed.  Many players put in greasy seasons during the Great Depression and during times of war.  

[Dave The Dastardly]

1 hour ago, miracleb said:

Oh boy...someone who mentions the death of a coach, social injustice, and covid and reasons for a poor season......is probably in for another poor season.  Hopefully that is not the case here.

I don't understand your comment at all. People are not automatons. Baseball players are only human. They're affected by what goes on around them one way or another whether they want to be or not.

[AceWrigley]

Go Lobos.

[bean5302]

Lots to like about Garver and I've been a big proponent of him for years. Hopefully, Garver will remain healthy this year. I think it's a big ask considering the concussion history and myriad of injuries which have mirrored Buxton in a lot of ways, but it would be huge for Garver to get a full, productive season in at this point. After being horribly mishandled by the Twins, he's finally approaching free agency. 

I'd imagine Garver had to have been a big proponent of the age 30 free agency change that MLBPA abandoned, but it's clear he's toting the line when it comes to negotiations. It makes me sad because I just don't see an end to the lockout when I read conversations like this. The sport is on the field, not off it. 

[Unwinder]

I'm sorry, his son's name is Gamble? Presumably Gamble Garver?

[Doctor Gast]

People are all different, each handle adversity differently. Many players opt out of 2020 because of covid, many decided to stay but had difficulties some like Maeda it had no effect. Social injustice and unrest in MPLS. as much as some may try not to let it effect them as being in the public, the public won't let you. We often think of MLB players as super heros and that the death of Bell wouldn't effect them. But death of some one close is bound to effect them.

I imagine the pressure of every day MLB ballgame is hard enough w/ it's adjusting to pitchers, a dead ball, the shift, injuries and the fans, w/o the added adversity. Nevertheless I'm glad he has risen above it. Wish him well

[Ted Schwerzler]

6 hours ago, miracleb said:

Oh boy...someone who mentions the death of a coach, social injustice, and covid and reasons for a poor season......is probably in for another poor season.  Hopefully that is not the case here.

Yeah, I don't think that's the straightforward causation and suggestion at all here. (Also, Mitch didn't have a poor season in 2021).

[Verified Member]

In the words of Steinman and Meatloaf - "All revved up with no place to go."

[Verified Member]

On 2/28/2022 at 3:56 PM, Verified Member said:

In the words of Steinman and Meatloaf - "All revved up with no place to go."

I guess now he has a place to go.