Travis d'Arnaud's tenure with the Los Angeles Dodgers is over after one pinch-hit appearance. The former New York Mets catcher who signed with the Dodgers on Sunday has been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for $100,000, the teams announced Friday. The Dodgers signed d'Arnaud to a one-year deal on Sunday and anticipated using him as a backup catcher and first baseman. But the Rays, dealing with injuries to Mike Zunino and Michael Perez, were in the market for a catcher who could help out now. Zunino went on the injured list with a quad injury on Friday and is expected to miss four to five weeks. D'Arnaud is a lifetime .242 hitter, with 47 home runs and 164 RBIs over seven seasons with the Mets. D'Arnaud, 30, was sidelined for most of last season following Tommy John surgery in April 2018. He was activated April 7 and was expected to be the Mets backup, but he went 2-for-23 before being designated for assignment on April 28. The Mets are on the hook for most of his $3.5 million salary. The Associated Press contributed to this report.<doc-sep>The Rays struck quickly to add a veteran in the wake of injuries to their top two catchers, acquiring Travis d’Arnaud from the Dodgers for cash considerations on Friday night. D’Arnaud, 30, spent much of 2013-17 with the Mets, missing most of last season while undergoing Tommy John surgery then working his way back this year only to be released last week after playing in 10 games as the backup to Wilson Ramos. With the Mets responsible for the bulk of his $3.52 million salary, the Dodgers signed D’Arnaud with some talk of making him a utility man. But then they agreed Friday to trade D’Arnaud to the the Rays, giving him a better opportunity for playing time. D’Arnaud, who hit 16 homers in 2017, has a career .242 average and .703 OPS in the majors. He gives the Rays a better option then rookies Nick Ciuffo and Anthony Bemboom as they seek to cover the absences of starter Mike Zunino, an estimated 4-5 weeks with a quad strain, and Michael Perez, 2-3 weeks with an oblique strain. D’Arnaud is expected to join the Rays in Saturday. To make room on the 40-man roster, they transferred Matt Duffy from the 10- the 60-day injured list. They are likely to send either Ciuffo or Bemboom back to Durham to create a 25-man roster spot.<doc-sep>The Rays have been one of the early season success stories in 2019. Tampa currently sits atop the AL East standings with a 23-13 record and a 1.5 game lead over the Yankees. With a +59 run differential on the season, they have been dominant since the start of the season on both sides of the ball. However, they recently hit a bit of a snag as both catcher Michael Perez and catcher Mike Zunino hit the 10 day IL recently which left the Rays with a hole in their roster at least temporarily. Fortunately, the team was able to find a player to fill in. BREAKING: #Rays are acquiring C Travis D’arnaud from #Dodgers for cash considerations — Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) May 10, 2019 It wasn’t THAT long ago that Travis d’Arnaud was thought to be the future behind the plate for the New York Mets as he posted a top 10 Rookie of the Year finish in 2014 and posted an .825 OPS season the year after that. However, d’Arnaud say his production slip after that and after only playing four games in 2018 total and struggling mightily for the Mets to start the 2019 season, New York moved him to the Dodgers who subsequently flipped Travis to the Rays for cash. In 11 games this season, d’Arnaud has slashed .083/.154/.083 in 26 plate appearances.<doc-sep>LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 09: Travis d'Arnaud #72 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets a single against Patrick Corbin #46 of the Washington Nationals in the fifth inning at Dodger Stadium on May 9, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) The Travis d’Arnaud Era with the Los Angeles Dodgers came to an end on Friday, as he was acquired by the Tampa Bay Rays. When the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Travis d’Arnaud, the plan was to turn him into a super utility player. His days as an every day backstop were seemingly over, as the Dodgers were going to give him a look at first and left. At least, that was the plan. On Friday, those plans changed. d’Arnaud was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays, with the ever popular cash considerations heading back to Los Angeles in return. The Dodgers traded C Travis d'Arnaud to the Rays for cash considerations, ending his very short stint in Los Angeles. “It was a good run," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "That simulated game we had the other day — it was great." — Alden Gonzalez (@Alden_Gonzalez) May 10, 2019 And so ends d’Arnaud’s time in Los Angeles. It was a truly unforgettable run, with his one plate appearance in those five days. His groundout to short in the bottom of the fifth against Patrick Corbin will echo through Dodgers lore for years to come. In all seriousness, d’Arnaud will have more of an opportunity for playing time in Tampa Bay. Both Mike Zunino and Michael Perez are on the injured list, leaving Nick Ciuffo and Anthony Bemboom as the two catchers in the majors. Ciuffo has not exactly hit in his limited major league action, with a .175/.244/.275 batting line in 47 plate appearances heading into Friday. The 29 year old Bemboom has never had a plate appearance at the major league level, having spent the past eight years in the Angels and Rockies systems before joining the Rays. While Bemboom has graded out as a solid defensive catcher in the minors, his lifetime .235/.309/.349 batting line with 32 homers and 60 doubles in 1762 plate appearances does not inspire confidence. For d’Arnaud, this is a chance to reestablish himself at the major league level. The one time top prospect had a solid run of success from 2014 through 2017, although injuries, including Tommy Joh surgery, limited his contributions. d’Arnaud has not exactly lit the world afire this season, either in his brief time in Los Angeles or as the backup to Wilson Ramos, with just two hits in 26 plate appearances. Want your voice heard? Join the Call To The Pen team! Write for us! The Tampa Bay Rays need help at catcher in the short term. Travis d’Arnaud may be able to provide that needed boost to the lineup if he can return to form.<doc-sep>
Ahead of Friday Night Fireworks, the Dodgers put on a pregame show full of entertainment. They made two trades in two separate deals, both for cash considerations. The biggest move? Catcher Travis d’Arnaud was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays. This news was broken by Tampa Bay Times reporter, Marc Topkin. BREAKING: #Rays are acquiring C Travis D’arnaud from #Dodgers for cash considerations — Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) May 10, 2019 d’Arnaud was signed by the Dodgers on May 5 after the Mets released his $3.5 million contract. The Lakewood High School alumnus only made one appearance in a Dodgers uniform — a pinch-hit at-bat on May 9 against the Nationals. Reports say the Dodgers will likely recall a catcher from their farm system to fill in the empty roster spot. The #Dodgers are calling up another catcher in their system. Haven’t announced which yet. Player is en route & will show up after game begins, likely. d’Arnaud is headed to the #Rays. — Alanna Rizzo (@alannarizzo) May 10, 2019 This spot may be claimed by Rocky Gale. Gale has already seen some time in the big leagues this year, taking the place of Russell Martin during his stint on the injured list. He went 2-for-14 with seven strikeouts. In their second move of the day, the Dodgers traded outfielder Paulo Orlando to the Chicago White Sox for cash, reported by Bill Plunkett of the OC Register. Orlando spent Spring Training at Camelback Ranch with the team and started the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City. He appeared in 24 games with a .211 batting average and .394 slugging percentage. Rotation news The starting rotation is expected to have some movement soon, in order to give a few of the starters extra rest, as reported by Ken Gurnick. There is no further information on this report.