Travis d’Arnaud agrees to two years, $12 million with Angels after Braves showed no interest in his services for 2025
Los Angeles Angels They continue their aggressive signing strategy at the start of free agency, agreeing to a two-year, $12 million contract with the wide receiver. Travis d’Arnaudas announced on Tuesday.
Travis d’Arnaud spent the last five years with the Braves who were not interested in retaining him. Getty Images
Los Atlanta Braves declined to pick up a one-year, $8 million option for D’Arnaud last week, and the Angels made a multi-year offer to the veteran catcher, who will turn 36 on Opening Day.
In a market where there weren’t enough receivers, D’Arnaud was one of the best players available at the position. He will be the substitute Logan O’Hoppethe 24-year-old player who hit 20 home runs and looks like a key piece for Los Angeles going forward.
The Angels have already added two more veterans to a team that went 63-99 this year, acquiring them in a trade for Designated Hitter Jorge Soler and giving right-handed starter Kyle Hendricks a one-year, $2.5 million contract.
The addition of d’Arnaud, who hit .238/.302/.436 with 15 home runs in 341 plate appearances, helps strengthen a roster that lacked depth last year and adds to a payroll approaching $170 millions. Much of it is dominated by the gardener Mike Trout and the third baseman Anthony Rendonwho will earn a combined $75 million this year.
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“Travis really stood out for us, someone who can not only play at a high level, but with a build that is off the charts,” Angels general manager Perry Minasian said on a video conference call. “He’s a winner. He’s played on a lot of winning teams. He knows what winning teams do. He has the ability to influence the clubhouse as positively as anyone I’ve ever met. He’s great with young pitchers. He’s great with teams. of coaches. He’s great with the managers. He’s an amazing guy. A guy from his hometown who lives 25 minutes away and he really wanted to be here.
“I think it will be great for a guy like Logan, who is reaching his full potential, to have someone with him as part of that tandem. Having someone like Travis d’Arnaud will really help his career move forward.”
The Angels’ attempt to compete in 2025 is closely aligned with the strong likelihood that they will be ineligible for a top-10 pick in the 2026 draft. If Los Angeles receives a top-6 pick during the 2020 draft 2025, almost a certainty, the Angels will not be eligible to do the same in 2026 due to anti-tanking rules in the collective bargaining agreement.
With the incentive of losing not so strong, the Angels are trying to build around Trout and a group of young players: O’Hoppe, the shortstop Zach Netothe first baseman Nolan Schanuel and the right opener Jose Soriano. The infielder Luis Rengifothe gardener Taylor Ward and the left-handed opener Tyler Anderson figure in the Angels’ hopes of winning next year.
A 12-year veteran, d’Arnaud spent the last five years with the Braves. In 884 career games, he has hit .248/.309/.426, with 123 home runs and 438 RBIs with the Mets, Dodgers, Rays and Bravies.
A Silver Bat winner in 2020 and an All-Star in 2022, d’Arnaud has caught 20.4 percent of baserunners in his career.
Ron Washington, the Angels manager, was a coach on the Braves staff when d’Arnaud was there, including their World Series-winning team in 2021.
The presence of d’Arnaud clearly means that Matt Thaissthe 2016 first-round pick who moved up as a catcher and moved to the infield corner only to return to catcher and serve as the Angels’ backup these past two years, no longer has a clear spot on the roster.
Minasian did not commit to eventually trading him.
Angels pitchers had the second-highest walk rate in the majors last year, ahead of only the Chicago White Sox. Minasian believes d’Arnaud, who has been rated above average for throwing on bases and has been praised for how he works with staff members to plan the game, will help in that area.
“To me, the catcher position is very important for a club,” said Minasian, who was in the Braves’ front office when D’Arnaud arrived in Atlanta in 2020. “And to have two players of this caliber on the same team , and to feel like we’re going to be able to put a receiver on the field every day that’s going to give us a chance to win, it’s huge.”
To make room for D’Arnaud on the roster, the Angels placed the right-handed pitcher Guillo Zuniga on assignment.
Information from Alden González of ESPN was used in this article.
