Activated C Travis d’Arnaud from the 60-day IL
You know the cliche so well you’ve even come to expect and dread it: “The Braves will soon be getting Travis d’Arnaud (and Huascar Ynoa and Ian Anderson) back from the IL, and that’s like a big trade itself!” We all roll our eyes at these comments, but they’re also somewhat true. Atlanta’s upgrade Wednesday to its C position is likely to be bigger than any upgrade acquired on July 30. So, while it isn’t a trade and no one should treat it as such, this is a significant day for Atlanta’s suddenly resurgent playoff odds.
Coming into the final year of his 2 year, $16M deal, d’Arnaud seemed a likely candidate for regression. The COVID-shortened 2020 season was a career year at the plate for d’Arnaud, OPS-ing .919 and winning the Silver Slugger for NL catchers. With just a single other season topping an .800 OPS, way back in 2015, it seemed unlikely d’Arnaud could repeat 2020’s small sample magic. What happened over d’Arnaud’s 87 pre-injury plate appearances was overkill, though. He foundered at the plate, slashing .220/.253/.341, unrecognizably far away from his 2020 pace. Incredibly, among the 7 (!) catchers Atlanta has used this season, d’Arnaud’s paltry .341 SLG somehow still ranks 2nd. It’s been a wasteland, to say the least. Atlanta ranks dead last among MLB teams in catcher OPS this season at .537.
d’Arnaud’s return should help that significantly. He’s probably not a .900 OPS guy, and he’s maybe not even an .800 OPS guy, but if he can be even a .700 OPS player, that improves Atlanta’s daily lineup by a considerable margin. d’Arnaud brings some familiarity and stability back to the roster, something this position badly needs. You don’t need many words on what getting him back means. It’s very good, even if he’s just the pre-2020 Travis d’Arnaud.
Designated C Kevan Smith for assignment
The interesting question leading up to d’Arnaud’s return was which catcher would be jettisoned to make room for him. Smith had become symbolic of Atlanta’s season, leaving Twitter aghast on a daily basis as to why he remained in the lineup. Sitting at Truist Park last month, I even got in on the action:
It was just too easy to look at a struggling ballclub, see a .200 SLG in the lineup, and make Kevan Smith the avatar for everything that had gone wrong this season.
And yet, there was reason to believe, until recently, that Smith would be the last man standing. Catcher ERA isn’t something on its own that translates from year to year, but Braves pitchers did generally have success with Smith behind the plate. When nothing is happening at the plate, it wouldn’t have surprised me if they kept him around to preserve that positive development behind it. Stephen Vogt wasn’t exactly outshining his counterpart - his .452 OPS was a mirror of futility. Just yesterday, I hunched that Smith might stay.
So am I surprised? Not exactly. Smith and Vogt fighting for this roster spot evoked the classic southern metaphor of “two mules fighting over a turnip”. The belligerents both stink, and the reward of sitting on the bench even more than you already do is unglamorous. If anything clinched this, it was the “hot hand” factor. Smith has recently taken his offense to new lows. Over the last two weeks, Smith is just 1 for 17. Stephen Vogt’s 2 for 22 in the same span must qualify as an offensive outburst.
If Vogt doesn’t pick up the pace a tad, Atlanta will likely feel the heat to bring William Contreras back up. But, presumably thanks to his success against righties as recently as 2019, and his generally better track record than Smith, the turnip is Vogt’s - for now.
Roster & Other Stuff
I’ll do this by order of operations. Designating Smith for assignment gets Atlanta down to 38 on the 40-man roster. Smith is earning the minimum, so there’s no monetary significance here.
Activating d’Arnaud from the 60-day IL moves it back to 39, leaving a spot open for Huascar Ynoa’s return, whenever that happens.
Eddie Rosario and Ian Anderson are also on the comeback trail, but neither will require a 40-man move to clear space.
Ozzie Albies just walked us off as I finished writing this. Boy, baseball has gotten a lot more fun awfully quickly. Go Braves.