In search of catcher depth, Rays acquire d’Arnaud

In a span of three days, the Rays placed Opening Day catchers Mike Zunino and Michael Perez on the injured list with a quadricep strain and oblique tightness, respectively. Nick Ciuffo was recalled from Triple A for the second time this season, and minor league free agent signing Anthony Bemboom also had his contract selected from Durham.

Not satisfied with their depth — and with Zunino expected to miss several weeks — the Rays acquired Travis d’Arnaud from the Dodgers for cash considerations Friday. Matt Duffy was placed on the 60-day IL to add d’Arnaud to the 40-man roster. A move to add him to the active roster has not yet occurred.

d’Arnaud, 30, had spent his entire major league career — until last week — with the Mets. He owns a .242 average in 1,495 career plate appearances with a .303 on-base percentage and .400 slugging percentage. Acquired alongside Noah Syndergaard in the trade that sent R.A. Dickey to Toronto, he finished seventh in Rookie of the Year voting in 2014. He’s regarded as a capable pitch framer.

He was ranked in Baseball America’s top 100 prospects five times in the Toronto and New York organizations, but his career has been derailed by injuries. Since arriving in the majors, he has six IL appearances, including missing nearly all of 2018 due to Tommy John surgery.

After 25 appearances this season, he was released by the Mets. He was signed by the Dodgers and batted for Los Angeles once prior to being traded to the Rays.