Already short-handed, Mariners without Garver, Donovan vs. Padres

SEATTLE -- Already without their runner-up for AL MVP, the Mariners saw their lineup take two more notable hits before Saturday’s game against the Padres, as catcher Mitch Garver and third baseman Brendan Donovan were each scratched two hours before first pitch.

Garver was replaced by Jhonny Pereda and Donovan by Leo Rivas.

No word was relayed immediately as to why they were pulled, but each had been dealing with recent ailments.

Garver said that his back tightened up on him when landing awkwardly on his right knee while attempting to corral a popout in foul territory late during Thursday’s win in Houston. But he also downplayed it at the time and remained in the game for two more innings, after a conferral with Mariners assistant athletic trainer Taylor Bennett.

At first, it looked like it was Garver’s right knee that was the issue, but he revealed postgame that the way he awkwardly landed on it actually caused more discomfort in his back.

“It wasn't my most graceful fall,” Garver joked at the time. “I just jammed up my back. It was nothing with my knee or anything. I just jammed up my back a little. It should be fine.”

But again, it wasn’t immediately clear if this issue was related to why he was scratched Saturday. It’s also possible that the Mariners wanted to instead have Garver catch George Kirby on Sunday, as Kirby has worked more regularly with him than any of Seattle’s six starters.

Donovan, meanwhile, was just activated from the 10-day IL last Friday after missing 17 games with a left groin muscle strain. He also dealt with hip soreness and right groin discomfort in April well before going on the IL, all of which he’s suggested have potentially been correlated to the sports hernia surgery he underwent in October.

“I’m still learning a lot about recovery and things I can do to keep my hips healthy after my surgery,” Donovan said last weekend.

“I think workload is one of those things, and pelvic positioning is another thing. That’s something that we have to attack in the weight room and in the training room every day.”

Yet, again, we don’t know if this was an aggravation or just a load management situation. For example, Donovan was out of Seattle’s lineup on Wednesday in Houston by design.

Nonetheless, the Mariners -- who just placed Cal Raleigh on the IL for the first time in his career on Thursday -- are looking to bounce back from being shut out for the fifth time on Friday. And they’ll do so without their highest on-base hitter and new primary catcher.