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The Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday announced they agreed to a two-year, $12 million deal with veteran catcher Travis d’Arnaud. D’Arnaud will be the primary backup to Logan O’Hoppe . And the Angels hope the soon-to-be 36-year-old’s mentorship can help the 24-year-old starter.
D’Arnaud was an All-Star in 2022, when he hit .268/.319/.
472 over 107 games. Across the last five seasons, all with Atlanta , he batted .251/.
312/.443 with 60 homers and 207 RBIs. He posted 15 homers in 99 games this season.
Advertisement “Travis really stuck out for us,” said Angels general manager Perry Minasian. “Not only as someone that can play at a high level. But the makeup is off the charts.
He’s a winner.” D’Arnaud, a Long Beach, Calif., native, was drafted in the first round out of Lakewood High by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2007.
A couple of years later, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays , who eventually sent him and Noah Syndergaard to the New York Mets in the R.A. Dickey deal in December 2012.
D’Arnaud made his major-league debut in 2013. D’Arnaud reunites with Minasian, who was with Toronto when the catcher arrived in the organization and was later with Atlanta when d’Arnaud signed with the Braves. It is unclear what the deal means for Matt Thaiss , who has served as the Angels backup catcher the last two-plus seasons.
A first-round pick in 2016, the 29-year-old Thaiss had a .622 OPS in 57 games this year. Minasian said it’s possible Thaiss could move to a new position, or that they could carry three catchers.
It appears more likely, however, that he’ll be traded. The Angels also announced the hiring of Sal Fasano, d’Arnaud’s catching coach in Atlanta. He’ll be working with the Angels as an assistant pitching coach.
Fasano’s new job as a pitching coach isn’t surprising to anyone with the Braves who saw how closely he and the catchers worked with Atlanta pitchers before and during games. Fasano frequently talked to pitchers between innings to pass on things he noticed from opposing hitters. These two additions follow a trend of the Angels bringing people from the Braves into their organization.
Manager Ron Washington, third base coach Eric Young Sr., infield coach Ryan Goins, head athletic trainer Mike Frosted and recent DH acquisition Jorge Soler were all recently with the Braves. “Having relationships here,” Minasian said, “obviously, I would imagine, made (d’Arnaud) feel comfortable in making this decision.
” Advertisement With d’Arnaud out of the picture in Atlanta, the Braves’ second catcher (behind Sean Murphy ) now figures to be Chadwick Tromp , who’s out of options, or their top position-player prospect, Drake Baldwin . Knowing how much the Braves value depth, Tromp would seem the likely choice to begin the season, since they would otherwise likely lose him to waivers. But even if they start the season with Tromp in the backup role and Baldwin at Triple A, the expectation would be for 23-year-old Baldwin to be called up by midseason or sooner.
He’s that good, his stock rising last year when he hit .298 with 12 homers, a .407 OBP and .
891 OPS in 72 games in Triple A after a midseason promotion from Double A. He also homered in the Futures Game. Tromp, 29, has a .
232 career average and .635 OPS in 156 plate appearances (59 games) during parts of five MLB seasons with the San Francisco Giants and Braves. That includes a .
250 average with six doubles, six RBIs and a .625 OPS in 19 games this season. He filled in capably behind the plate when Murphy missed two months after an oblique strain Opening Day.
Tromp has five MLB homers, though all but one came in his first season with the Giants in 2020. (Photo: David Berding / Getty Images).
