Travis d'Arnaud

At 35 years old, Travis d'Arnaud has this physical status:

Travis Emmanuel d'Arnaud (born February 10, 1989), nicknamed Lil D, is an American professional baseball catcher for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He appeared in baseball for the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Tampa Bay Rays.

Early life

D'Arnaud was born in Long Beach, California, on February 10, 1989. He was born into a musical family, and his mother, Marita, operated an after-school performing-arts center in Long Beach, while his father performed trumpet, piano, and trombone. Two of d'Arnaud's uncles were pianists, while his cousin was an electropop musician. d'Arnaud described his Long Beach upbringing as having a "huge baseball community." He was a childhood fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) and modeled his baseball career after Hall of Fame catcher Mike Piazza.

"How cool it would be if we played with each other or against each other in the big leagues as children" would be discussed by d'Arnaud and his older brother Chase. Rather than following Chase into playing for Los Alamitos High School, d'Arnaud chose Lakewood High School, the rivals of Los Alamitos. In 2007, D'Arnaud's first scouts were drawn to the Toronto Blue Jays, and he was invited to work out. D'Arnaud graduated in 2007 and was inducted into the Lakewood Youth Hall of Fame as a Co-Athlete of the Year in 2008.

After high school, his brother attended, but the Philadelphia Phillies selected him in the second round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft, the 37th overall pick. He decided against college participation and signed a minor league deal worth $832,500.

Personal life

He is Lance and Marita d'Arnaud's son. Chase d'Arnaud, his older brother, was a Major League Baseball player from 2011 to 2018. He married Britney Cobian at a Lake Tahoe location in November 2017. He is of partial Filipino descent.

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Professional career

d'Arnaud began his career with the Philadelphia Phillies' Rookie League affiliate, the Gulf Coast Phillies, in 2007. He played 41 games in the GCL, with a.241 batting average and a.626 OPS.

In 2008, d'Arnaud started the season with the Williamsport Crosscutters of the New York–Penn League, the Phillies' Class-A Short Season affiliate. He appeared in 48 games in the NYPL, hitting.309 with an OPS of.833, and was picked for the mid-season All-Star game. From there, he was promoted to the Class-A Lakewood BlueClaws. He batted.305/.464 in 58 games, while on defense in 58 games he committed ten errors and was charged with 16 passed balls.

In 2009, d'Arnaud played with the BlueClaws, where he stayed in 126 games. With an OPS of.738, he ranked.255, though he had 13 home runs. He was once more selected for the All-Star game, this time in the South Atlantic League. The 2009 South Atlantic League championship was won by the BlueClaws.

In a ten player trade, d'Arnaud was moved from the Phillies to the Toronto Blue Jays organization in 2010. Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies was born in the United States, as well as $6 million from the Blue Jays. Kyle Drabek, and Michael Taylor, who then flipped to the Oakland Athletics for Brett Wallace, were among Toronto's d'Arnaud, Kyle Drabek and Michael Taylor. Wallace was then traded to the Houston Astros for center-field prospect Anthony Gose. The Dunedin Blue Jays' High-Arnaud affiliate in the Florida State League spent the entire 2010 season with the Blue Jays, the Blue Jays' High-Arnaud affiliate in the Florida State League. Despite suffering from back injuries and playing in a higher league, d'Arnaud put up similar figures to his 2009 campaign, winning.726 and six home runs in 71 games. D'Arnaud, d'Arnaud, was named FSL Player of the Week for the week and was selected to compete in the midsummer Home Run Derby. He was named as a Mid-Season and Post-Season All-Star.

d'Arnaud played in the Eastern League for the entire 2011 season, with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the Blue Jays Double-Arnaud affiliate. d'Arnaud's defense had steadily improved his defense over the previous three seasons, but 2011 marked a major change in his offensive abilities. In 114 games, he had a.311 batting average and an OBP of.371. He saw another big increase in power, with 21 home runs and a slugging percentage of.542 and 33 doubles. d'Arnaud was appointed to the Mid-Season All-Star team in the Eastern League on July 13. On August 25, he joined the All-Star team for his sixth All-Star game in total. d'Arnaud was named the Most Valuable Player in El Salvador on August 26.

The R. Howard Webster award, which is given to the best player on each level of the Blue Jays minor league farm system, was announced on September 16 by the Toronto Blue Jays. In the final series of the Eastern League championships, d'Arnaud went on to win his second minor league championship title in the division after the New Hampshire Fisher Cats defeated the Reading Phillies 3 games to 1, then defeated the Richmond Flying Squirrels 3 games to 1.

For the 2011 season, Baseball America named d'Arnaud as the Best Defensive Catcher in the Eastern League. He was also named the top prospect in the EL, behind highly hyped outfield prospect Bryce Harper and teammate Anthony Gose. D'Arnaud was also named the starting catcher for Baseball America's honorary "classifications" All-Star team.

USA Baseball announced on September 15 that d'Arnaud had been selected for the IBAF's 2011 Baseball World Cup's 25-man roster.

D'Arnaud was selected to appear in the 2012 All-Star Futures Game on June 21, d'Arnaud.

The Blue Jays traded d'Arnaud, Noah Syndergaard, John Buck, and Wuilmer Becerra to the New York Mets on December 17, 2012, for R. A. Dickey, Josh Thole, and Mike Nickeas.

On March 24, 2013, the Mets optioned d'Arnaud to Triple-A Las Vegas 51s. At a game on April 17, he sustained a non-displaced fracture on his left foot. D'Arnaud was able to begin a rehab journey on June 3; however, he recovered more quickly than expected after being limited to swimming in a rehabilitation pool as of June 21, while waiting for land-based running. On July 24, d'Arnaud played in his first rehab game with the GCL Mets and went 1–3 at the plate. On August 9, he returned to the Las Vegas 51s.

On August 17, the Mets called up d'Arnaud for the first time. d'Arnaud's first major league plate appearance earned him a four-pitch walk from San Diego starter Edinson Vólquez. With two walks, he ended the game 0–2 in the game. In the 8th inning, D'Arnaud scored his first major league hit against Atlanta Braves pitcher Luis Ayala on August 20. On August 25, he hit his first Major League home run, throwing off a two-run shot off Detroit Tigers pitcher Rick Porcello. Travis received a curtain call from Mets fans after he went home.

Travis played in 31 games in 111 at-bats, with 20 hits, one home run, five RBIs, 12 walks, four runs scored, and 21 strikeouts.

When he was struck by Alfonso Soriano's backswing on May 13, he suffered his third concussion of his career. Due to a.180 batting average, d'Arnaud was optioned to Las Vegas on June 8. Taylor Teagarden took his place. He hit.436 with six home runs in the 15 games after his demo. D'Arnaud's career as starting catcher was revived by the Mets on June 24, when he was called back to the Mets. Teagarden was placed on the disabled list due to a left hamstring strain, which was reflected in response. d'Arnaud's three-run home run off Scott Kazmir of the Oakland Athletics in the bottom of the third inning with two outs taking a 7-1 lead. The Mets won the game ten-1-0. As he struck out twice, it was the only batter for d'Arnaud in 4 at-bats. D'Arnaud batted.272 with 10 home runs for the remainder of the season.

In 421 at-bats, he batted for 144 runs, 43 RBIs, 32 walks, 48 runs, and 64 strikeouts. He led the NL in passed balls on defense, with five out of five. In the 2014 National League Rookie of the Year Award nominations, he finished seventh overall.

In February, d'Arnaud traded uniform numbers with bench coach Bob Geren, going from number 15 to number 7. D'Arnaud broke his hand when he was struck by a pitch on April 19, and he was later placed on the 15-day disabled list. Kevin Plawecki, a fellow catcher, had his spot on the roster and was promoted to a starter. Danny Muno was activated from the disabled list on June 10 after being sent down to the 51s. D'Arnaud's game against the Atlanta Braves in Atlanta on June 20, he was unable to complete the game in the sixth innings due to an injured elbow. D'Arnaud, a two-run single and a solo homer, was injured while trying to identify A. J. Pierzynski, who was trying to score on a sacrifice fly to left, who was unable to determine him. Michael Cuddyer's throw was up the third base line, and Pierzynski collided with d'Arnaud, who couldn't hold the ball. He was re-listed on the disabled list with a strained left elbow. Johnny Monell, the catcher, was suspended from the roster. Anthony Recker was taken back to prison on July 30.

Travis played in 67 games, batting.268 in 239 at-bats, with 64 hits, 12 home runs, 31 runs, 31 runs scored, and 49 strikeouts.

In all 14 games, he was behind the plate in the postseason. In the Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, he batted.158 in 19 at-bats, one home run, four RBIs, three runs scored, with eight strikeouts. With four hits, two home runs, two RBIs, two runs scored, and five strikeouts, batting.267 in 15 at-bats in 16 plate appearances against the Chicago Cubs in the Championship Series. In 21 at-bats/plate appearances against the Kansas City Royals in the World Series, he batted.143, with three hits, one RBI, and four strikeouts.

D'Arnaud was the Mets' starting catcher but was injured and replaced by Kevin Plawecki, allowing René Rivera to be activated as a backup catcher. After a stint with the St. Lucie Mets and Las Vegas 51s, d'Arnaud was revived in June and Plawecki was sent down, with Rivera remaining as the backup. On July 5, 2016, d'Arnaud upgraded his uniform number from 7 to 18 to pay tribute to former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, as well as to give José Reyes the number he wore throughout his entire MLB career.

Due to a bruised right wrist, d'Arnaud was placed on the 10-day disabled list on May 5, 2017. He was activated on May 24. The Mets opened d'Arnaud at third base on August 16, following José Reyes and Wilmer Flores' injuries. Terry Collins went back and forth between third and second base, swapping him with Asdrbal Cabrera 12 times in order to minimize his defense's impact.

D'Arnaud was the Mets' Opening Day catcher before starting the season off. Due to a partial tear of the UCL in his right elbow, d'Arnaud was put on the 10-day disabled list on April 11. On April 17, Tommy John surgery was performed. He was added to the 60-day disabled list on April 21, which was the first time he was on the 60-day disabled list.

d'Arnaud was approved for assignment on April 28, 2019. He was released on May 3.

D'Arnaud signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 5, 2019. He was a pinch hitter in one game for the Dodgers.

The Dodgers traded d'Arnaud to the Tampa Bay Rays for cash considerations on May 10, 2019. D'Arnaud went 3-for-3 with two walks and three home runs, with a go-ahead three-run home run off of Aroldis Chapman at Yankee Stadium on July 15. D'Arnaud became the fifth player in Rays franchise history to reach three home runs in a single game. The Chicago White Sox defeated the team 4-2 on July 21, d'Arnaud's first grand slam off the back of Dylan Cease leading the team to his first grand slam off his career in career.

With 16 home runs and 69 RBIs, he batted.313-.433 with three teams combined in 2019.

D'Arnaud signed a two-year deal with the Atlanta Braves worth $16 million on November 24, 2019.

He had his breakout offensive season in 2020, despite being 31 years old. In 165 at bats, he batted.321/.386/.533. In addition, he was given his first Silver Slugger Award as the best offensive catcher in the National League. With five out of five, he led the NL in passed balls.

d'Arnaud sustained a left thumb injury after tagging out Blue Jays outfielder Randal Grichuk at home plate on May 1, 2021. d'Arnaud was placed on the 60-day wounded list (IL) on May 2, with a thumb ligament bruise that necessitated surgery. d'Arnaud was launched from the 60 day IL on August 11, 2021.

On August 20, 2021, the Braves and d'Arnaud decided to an extension. The contract is worth $16 million over two years and includes a club option for the 2024 season, which is worth $8 million.

With 7 home runs and 26 RBIs, he batted.220/.388/.388 in 2021. In game 3 of the World Series, the Braves won the 2021 World Series for the first time since 1995. d'Arnaud ran solo home run in game 88-73, clinching the NL East.

d'Arnaud was drafted as a reserve catcher on the 2022 Major League Baseball All-Star Game roster at midseason.

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