Travis D’Arnaud turns 21 years old today. He was drafted out of high school in the first round, 37th overall, of the 2007 amateur entry draft by the Phillies. He received an $832,500 signing bonus which was enough for him to break his commitment to play college ball at Pepperdine with his brother. Your Toronto Blue Jays selected 38th overall that year and it was no secret the team coveted D’Arnaud. We ended up taking LHP Brett Cecil and no one can be really disappointed with that. He made 17 starts for us in 2009 winning 7 games. His numbers were not great but he got his first taste of the show and should benefit from the experience moving forward. Back to D’Arnaud. He stands 6’2 and weights in at 195lbs. By all reports he is an above average defensive catcher. His throwing arm is strong and accurate. He has quick feet. Words like athletic and agile are used to describe his movements behind the plate. Scouts praise his game management skills and his “feel” for the position. Things like calling games, setting up the hitters and working together with the pitchers are tremendously underrated abilities when discussing catchers. To the casual observer these integral parts of the game of baseball go unnoticed. Most people can not comprehend the amount of trust a catcher must build up over time with every member of the pitching staff.
Happy Birthday To Our New Catcher Of The Future!
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