SAN ANTONIO – Ahead of the 2020 season, Travis d’Arnaud signed with the Braves. With them, he became one of baseball’s better catchers. It included a magical 2021 postseason run, when d’Arnaud caught every inning for the Braves as they won the World Series.
The sides – the Braves and d’Arnaud – have a fondness for one another. But come next season, each could have to adjust.
The Braves on Monday declined their $8 million option on d’Arnaud, which made the catcher a free agent.
The Braves on Monday exercised their $16 million option on Marcell Ozuna and declined their $7 million option on Luke Jackson. (Jackson receives a $2 million buyout.) These moves came after the Braves gave left-handed reliever Aaron Bummer a new two-year deal and reworked Reynaldo López’s contract.
The Braves love d’Arnaud, but they valued the added payroll flexibility at the beginning of their offseason. They simply were not ready to lock in the $8 million for d’Arnaud. They are not closing the door on signing d’Arnaud, but Monday’s news means he can go elsewhere.
In 2024, d’Arnaud, an All-Star two years before, hit .238 with a .739 OPS. He hit 15 home runs and drove in 48 runs. He started 99 games. He’ll be 36 years old on opening day next season, but still calls a great game and provides a professional at-bat.
Off the field, d’Arnaud was a leader in the clubhouse. Following the departures of Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson, d’Arnaud became a more prominent leadership voice and presence. He helped set the tone.
A veteran, d’Arnaud also played a large role in game-planning. In conjunction with others, he helped pick through and utilize scouting reports. Another prominent person in that group: Catching coach Sal Fasano, whom the organization decided not to retain for the 2025 season.
Without d’Arnaud and Fasano – though d’Arnaud could end up back with Atlanta – the Braves’ pregame game-planning meetings will look different. But there are others, like pitching coach Rick Kranitz and the analytics department, who contribute to those meetings. It’s a team effort.
The Braves’ decision on d’Arnaud also means they’re preparing for Sean Murphy to potentially catch a far higher percentage of games. Chadwick Tromp might be his backup, though top catching prospect Drake Baldwin could be a candidate to break camp with the big club in 2025.
And this is worth mentioning: With Atlanta’s other needs, perhaps $8 million was too steep for a catcher who’ll split time with Murphy. After acquiring him two offseasons ago, the Braves signed Murphy to a six-year, $73 million deal. Murphy made $9 million in 2024 and d’Arnaud earned $8 million, but Murphy’s salary goes up to $15 million in 2025, which means the Braves would’ve paid $23 million for the catching spot if they’d picked up d’Arnaud’s option.
The Braves value d’Arnaud, of course, but they needed the additional payroll flexibility. In recent days, they have made moves to free up financial flexibility for their offseason. They know they have holes they must address, and they weren’t ready to lock in the $8 million for d’Arnaud.
With their activity in recent days, the Braves have effectively freed up around $33 million for 2025, depending on how you do the math and who you include in it. This figure accounts for the Braves shedding Jorge Soler, declining the options of d’Arnaud and Jackson (plus Jackson’s buyout), and the new deals for López and Bummer. And this number would decrease if the Braves don’t non-tender right-hander Griffin Canning, whom they acquired in the Soler trade.
The Braves still plan to increase payroll. The Braves opened the 2024 season with a cash payroll of around $223 million, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. They expect to begin the 2025 season with a number higher than that. How much higher? We’ll see. But they intend to add.
The Braves’ moves to free up payroll might seem to point to an impactful addition or two, whether in free agency or on the trade market. This is a possibility, but the added flexibility could also give the Braves space to build the deepest team possible instead of prioritizing one marquee addition.
Last offseason, the Braves declined the options on four of five eligible players. They only exercised their club option on Charlie Morton. They wanted as much flexibility as possible at the beginning of their offseason. Eventually, they signed Reynaldo López, and acquired Chris Sale, Jarred Kelenic and Bummer. They increased payroll.
This time around, the Braves picked up Ozuna’s option, which was expected. They declined Jackson’s option, which also was no surprise.
But d’Arnaud?
That one came as a bit of a shock. On his end-of-season Zoom call, Anthopoulos listed d’Arnaud as someone – along with Ozuna and Bummer – who had put himself in a good spot to have his option picked up. This isn’t to hold Anthopoulos to that, but only to make this point: No one batted an eye when hearing that. Of course d’Arnaud would return. It made sense. (Anthopoulos, though, never said definitively one way or the other.)
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