SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Mariners released veteran catcher Mitch Garver and outfielder Rob Refsnyder among seven roster moves Tuesday.
Right-hander Seranthony Domínguez and outfielder Taylor Ward, both acquired before Monday’s trade deadline, were added to the active roster ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the Detroit Tigers.
Ward, 32, batted eighth after coming over from the Baltimore Orioles for right-handers Alex Hoppe, Brock Moore and Harrison Kreiling. In 111 games, Ward is hitting .246 with 20 doubles, seven home runs, 30 RBIs and an American League-leading 87 walks. Domínguez, 31, is 4-3 with a 3.99 ERA in 43 games this season.
Brendan Donovan, a 2025 All-Star who has been sidelined since May 15 with a left groin muscle strain, was activated from the 10-day injured list. Over 25 games this season, the utilityman is hitting .274 with three home runs, four doubles and eight RBIs.
Catcher Jhonny Pereda was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma. Outfielder Stuart Fairchild was designated for assignment.
Pereda, 30, is hitting .270 with two home runs and four RBIs in 19 games with the Mariners this season. He takes over for Garver as Cal Raleigh’s backup.
Garver, 35, appeared in 50 games for Seattle after signing a minor league contract with the Mariners in February, hitting .175 with four home runs and 15 RBIs.
Refsnyder, 35, appeared in 53 games with the Mariners this season after signing a one-year contract in December, hitting .140 with four home runs and 11 RBIs. He was on the injured list from June 29 to July 27 with right knee inflammation.
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Baltimore Orioles' Taylor Ward (3) celebrates scoring against the Detroit Tigers during the 12th inning of a baseball game Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Seranthony Domínguez throws against the Houston Astros during the ninth inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Seattle Mariners' Mitch Garver walks back to the dugout after striking out during the ninth inning to end a baseball game in a loss to the Minnesota Twins, Friday, July 31, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Longtime incumbent U.S. Rep. Don Beyer, a Democrat seeking his seventh term in Congress, defeated four challengers to win his party’s nomination in northern Virginia’s 8th District Tuesday.
Beyer will go on to face Republican candidate Tony Sabio in the general election. Located just outside Washington, D.C. the 8th District is overwhelmingly blue. Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger won 80% of the vote there in last year’s election.
Beyer, who was first elected to Congress in 2014, served two terms as Virginia’s lieutenant governor in the 1990s, was his party’s nominee for governor in 1997 and later served as President Barack Obama’s ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
He campaigned as a tested leader, touting his efforts to protect federal workers, promote clean energy and regulate artificial intelligence. He had the support of Virginia’s Democratic political establishment and Democratic-aligned interest groups, while facing opponents who pitched themselves as anti-establishment, generational change agents.
Beyer defeated Lorena Bruner, Michael Duffin, Adam Dunigan and Mo Seifeldein.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) —
Virginia voters picked their nominees Tuesday for this year’s congressional midterm elections, capping a primary season marked by upheaval thanks to Democrats’ failed redistricting initiative.
The commonwealth typically holds its primaries in June but this year moved them to August to accommodate a push approved by voters — but squashed by the courts — to draw congressional districts more favorable to Democrats, part of a nationwide redistricting battle. Polls closed Tuesday after a day of heavy downpours that caused flash flooding in parts of the state.
The state Supreme Court struck down the Democrats’ redrawn map, which would have given their candidates a shot at winning 10 of the state’s 11 congressional seats, but not before candidates launched campaigns in those presumed districts. When it became clear in May that voters would be casting ballots in congressional districts that have been in place since 2021, many candidates ended their bids. Others scrambled to move their campaign to another district, while some opted to carry on in much less favorable races.
The upheaval created challenges for the candidates, who had to stay in the primary season longer than usual and in some cases take their messages to different communities, Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger recently told reporters. But Spanberger, a former member of Congress who represented swing districts, said she remained “bullish” on her party's chances in the general election and hopeful that as many as four seats could flip in Virginia.
“The biggest point of consternation that I have is I think that along the way, people … incorrectly took the message that we couldn’t win without redistricting. We can win. I believe we will win,” she said.
Virginia is currently represented in the U.S. House by six Democrats and five Republicans, all of whom are seeking reelection this year. Democrats who are less optimistic than Spanberger hope to flip at least two seats, contributing to their party’s effort to take control of the House for the second half of Trump’s term.
There are crowded Democratic primaries in two of the most competitive seats, where Republican incumbents Jen Kiggans and Rob Wittman avoided intraparty challenges but will be on defense in the fall. Both received Trump's endorsement.
Elsewhere, two incumbents, Democratic Rep. Don Beyer and Republican Rep. John McGuire, face primary challenges but have far outraised their opponents.
Republicans also were picking their nominee for what will be an uphill challenge against U.S. Sen. Mark Warner.
The coastal 2nd District, with its population center in Virginia Beach, is a must-win for the party. The slightly more Republican-leaning 1st District has about half its population in the Richmond suburbs and the other half in more rural counties stretching north and west.
Former two-term congresswoman Elaine Luria won the Democratic nomination Tuesday in Virginia’s battleground 2nd District, setting up what will be a closely watched general election rematch with Kiggans.
Luria flipped the district in 2018 and served for two terms before Kiggans defeated her in 2022. She was a member of the the Jan. 6 committee, which investigated the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Luria emerged from a four-way Democratic primary. She had been the establishment favorite, with backing from the House Democrats’ campaign arm and a wide array of Democratic leaders including Spanberger.
The 1st District features a seven-way primary, but most observers see a front-runner in Shannon Taylor, who has served as the elected prosecutor in suburban Richmond’s Henrico County for 14 years.
The primary is one of many across the country featuring the internal Democratic Party split between establishment and progressive candidates. Taylor has the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and a massive fundraising advantage but has faced sharp criticism from her opponents, including Salaam Bhatti, a more progressive candidate.
Voter Devin Garcia, 30, cast a ballot Tuesday in suburban Richmond for Bhatti, a public interest lawyer.
Garcia backed him over more centrist candidates, wanting someone “gung-ho” about expanding access to affordable healthcare, supporting diversity initiatives and protecting abortion rights.
“I do think that we need more bold people that are going to take a real stand,” Garcia said. “The Trump administration isn’t fighting fair, and I think caught the Democrats on the back foot.”
The race also includes several military veterans — Elizabeth Dempsey Beggs, Jason Knapp and Mel Tull — along with environmental advocate Tim Cywinski and attorney Ericka Kopp.
In central Virginia’s 5th District, Trump-endorsed McGuire, a former Navy SEAL and state lawmaker, faces veteran Melanie Lucero, whom McGuire has far outraised.
In Northern Virginia’s overwhelmingly blue 8th District surrounding Washington, incumbent Rep. Don Beyer faces four challengers for the nomination as he seeks a seventh term.
Tom Perriello, a former congressman seeking the chance at a comeback, has led fundraising in a three-way race for the Democratic nomination in the 5th District, which he represented for one term beginning in 2009. Some Democrats, including Spanberger, are hopeful about the party's chances of flipping the 5th District, though it leans solidly Republican.
Voters will also be settling a three-way statewide contest to pick the Republican nominee to challenge Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, a well-known former governor who was first elected to the Senate in 2008 and currently serves as the ranking Democrat on the chamber’s Intelligence Committee.
Defeating Warner, who did not have a primary challenger, is expected to be a difficult task. The race is not among those seen as a battleground that will determine control of the Senate.
The GOP contenders are: Kim Farington, an accountant who has touted her work over decades in the federal government; Bert Mizusawa, a decorated retired Army major general; and David Williams, a Marine Corps reservist.
In suburban Richmond, Republican voter Chris Weymouth, 85, voted for Mizusawa because she believed he would put America first, support the Constitution and protect America’s freedoms. She said Democrats have moved so far left she would “never” consider voting for one.
Democratic congressional candidate Shannon Taylor speaks with supporter Bill Ramsey at a door-knocking event Saturday, July 25, 2026, in Williamsburg, Va. (AP Photo/Mike Kropf)
