The catcher has hit incredibly well since he was sent down to Triple-A.
Ten days ago, the Mets sent 25-year-old catcher Travis d’Arnaud to Triple-A Las Vegas. The move was understandable, at least, since d’Arnaud had hit just .180/.271/.273 with three home runs in 145 plate appearances with the Mets this season. Throw in 112 poor plate appearances from the end of the 2013 season, and d’Arnaud’s still-young major league career was not off to a great start.
In his brief time back in the minors, though, d’Arnaud has made his case to rejoin the big league club, hitting .394/.459/.909 with five home runs in 37 plate appearances. Even by the lofty standards of hitting in the Pacific Coast League, those numbers are impressive.
The Mets wanted d’Arnaud to get his swing right in the minors, but barring another player on the major league roster hitting the disabled list, the team could not recall him until ten days had passed from June 8. And if d’Arnaud stays in the minors for more than ten more days from today, he will be out of options, which means the Mets would not have the ability to send d’Arnaud to the minors without consequence in the future. Given the way he’s performed, it would be a pretty big surprise if the team were to burn his final option.
Of course, the Mets are still hanging around in the National League East despite a bad record this season. Their current catchers—Anthony Recker and Taylor Teagarden—aren't exactly tearing the cover off the ball. While d'Arnaud figures to rejoin the team soon no matter what, should the Mets call him up immediately or give him as much time in the minors as possible before burning that last option?