Travis d'Arnaud (C, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in NL-Only Leagues / Deeper Leagues / Two-Catcher Leagues

ANALYSIS: When the Mets traded reigning Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey before the 2013 season, they expected a little more from top propsect Travis d'Arnaud than they have gotten thus far. In 385 at-bats over the past two seasons, d'Arnaud owns just a .221/.291/.361 triple slash line, not quite equaling his .290/.350/.488 line over parts of eight years in the minors. He also has just 12 home runs, 11 of which have come this year. The 25-year-old catcher has dealt with injuries and has struggled at the plate, finding himself bouncing back and forth between Triple-A and the majors.

He has absolutely dominated throughout his stays in Triple-A, and the fact that their stadium in Las Vegas is historically hitter-friendly doesn't take away from his remarkable line of .436/.475/.909 in 55 at-bats there this year. While he hasn't quite lived up to the potential just yet, he has shown signs of improvement as of late, batting .266 since returning to the majors in late June, after hitting just .180 before being sent down. As he continues to become more comfortable facing major league pitching, d'Arnaud's value in both fantasy and real baseball will dramatically increase. He has above average power for a catcher, and should begin to further tap into his overall potential. As for now, though, consider him a viable fantasy option in just NL-Only leagues and two-catcher leagues, and perhaps in deep mixed leagues as an injury replacement.