d’Arnaud on offense
Although I’ve seen him described as a big bat, d’Arnaud’s career line of 242/.307/.412/.719 is almost exactly the Major League average of .238/.309/.408/.717 for catchers. When he’s played 100 games, d’Arnaud’s hit 16 homers and had an OPS+ around 105. That said, most consider him a bat-first catcher if he stays on the field.
Ginny Searle wrote about the signing of d’Arnaud for Baseball Prospectus.
". . . a tandem with a strong-for-catcher bat in d’Arnaud (the Mets product has an exactly league average career DRC+) and an excellent defender in Flowers."
Craig Edwards at Fangraphs posted a similar view.
"the Braves were happy to bring Flowers back (but) needed another competent catcher to replace McCann. d’Arnaud fills that void, and at a pretty fair price given his blend of experience and upside."
After pointing out how thin the free-agent catching field is this off-season, Edwards continued.
"With. . .and no need to play first or designated hitter, d’Arnaud should get a bit more rest and perhaps see some improvement in his numbers. d’Arnaud framing metrics were pretty good last year, though not as stellar as his early career figures in New York, when he was 41 runs above average . . . if d’Arnaud is a league average bat or his framing numbers rebound at all, this contract will be a bargain for Atlanta."
That’s a Wrap
The d’Arnaud signing is another case of Alex Anthopoulos knowing who he wanted and signing him, without regard to where the market stood at that time.
He acquired d’Arnaud from the Phillies when the young catcher was still a prospect, and traded him to the Mets – not because he wanted to, but because the situation required it.
He’s moved decisively to fill gaps so far, and I expect that to continue. He’s spending money like a man without any worries about an overdraft on his checking account, and I expect that to continue as well.
Most know I feel they overpaid for d’Arnaud, not because he’s a bad catcher (he isn’t) or because he can’t hit (he’s better than anyone the Atlanta Braves have had since Kurt Suzuki left), but because I doubt his ability to stay on the field.
Every day he’s off the field is a day Flowers catches, and that’s not a good thing no matter how many pitches he frames.
Jason Castro offered the same profile as d’Arnaud at a lower price point, but the GM was looking forward to 2021 when Flowers leaves, and one of the prospects comes up to start his career.
The contract provides continuity. It was the player the GM knew and wanted. While most acknowledge it as an overpay, it removes the questions about catching and allows the Atlanta Braves to focus on other issues like third base, starting pitching and the outfield.
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