SEATTLE — The Mariners have found their leading candidate to be their backup catcher in 2026.
The club is nearing an agreement on a Major League contract with veteran backstop Andrew Knizner, sources told MLB.com on Friday night, though it has not officially confirmed the transaction, which is pending a physical. The move will bring Seattle’s 40-man roster to 39, and it is expected to still be in the market for bullpen depth.
The need for a No. 2 to All-Star Cal Raleigh became even more pronounced after the Mariners traded catching prospect Harry Ford to the Nationals, along with Minor League pitching prospect Isaac Lyon, in exchange for left-handed leverage reliever Jose A. Ferrer last Saturday. Ford was third in line at the end of last season and behind Mitch Garver, who became a free agent after the postseason.
And it’s likely that, beyond Knizner, the club will continue to add catching depth at the upper Minor League levels before Spring Training, as general manager Justin Hollander suggested at the Winter Meetings earlier this week.
Luke Stevenson, whom the club selected in the Competitive Balance Round A (No. 35 overall) of last July’s MLB Draft, is a big part of their longer-term plans, and some scouts have suggested that he has a higher upside than Ford. Stevenson is also 21 years old and played the past two seasons at the University of North Carolina, making him more seasoned than most within Seattle’s No. 3-ranked farm system by MLB Pipeline. Stevenson is ranked the club’s No. 9 prospect.
But the Mariners aren’t necessarily banking on Stevenson being MLB-ready in 2026, and as such, will continue to bolster their depth at the position — which is where Knizner comes in.
Knizner spent last season with the Giants and was designated for assignment on Nov. 21, after which he elected free agency. In 33 games, he hit .221/.299/.299 (.598 OPS) with one homer, one triple, one double and five RBIs across 88 plate appearances, with an 11.4% strikeout rate and 8.0% walk rate. He was worth 73 wRC+ (league average is 100) and 0.2 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.
Those numbers don’t necessarily paint a glowing offensive picture, but the Mariners also won’t need Knizner to be a key run producer. After all, Raleigh led all primary American League catchers in playing time, by both plate appearances (705) and innings caught (1,072).
Knizner has spent 2,286 innings behind the plate in the big leagues. Most of his defensive numbers rated as below average last season — he was in the 22nd percentile in blocks above average (minus-3) and 10th percentile in pop time (2.00 seconds), per Statcast. Over the past four seasons, he’s thrown out 16.4% of attempted basestealers.
Knizner, who turns 31 on Feb. 3, has played parts of seven MLB seasons and is a familiar face to Seattle’s front office for his time in Texas, in 2024. Prior, he spent his first five years with the Cardinals (2019-2023), who selected him in the seventh round of the 2016 MLB Draft.
