'Phenomenal' Tromp giving Braves just what they need

This story was excerpted from Mark Bowman's Braves Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO -- If Chadwick Tromp doesn’t play another game at the Major League level this year, he will still end up being one of the Braves’ most valuable contributors.

“We feel like if he’s catching that day, we still have a really good chance to win,” Braves ace Max Fried said. “That’s the ultimate compliment you can give to a catcher.”

The Braves own the National League’s third-best record despite losing 2023 All-Star catcher Sean Murphy to an oblique strain on Opening Day. 2022 All-Star catcher Travis d’Arnaud has continued to excel both at and behind the plate. But Tromp more than exceeded expectations while helping d’Arnaud pick up the slack.

“I keep saying we were fortunate to have had a guy who could step in and do the job that [Tromp] did,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “Everybody on the staff likes throwing to him. He’s done a great job. Those are hard shoes to fill. He’s replacing an All-Star. Travis has done a phenomenal job, and Trompy has stepped in there and we’ve gotten a lot of good mileage out of a bad situation.”

Murphy homered and threw out an attempted basestealer when he played his first Minor League rehab game for Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday. He will rejoin Atlanta’s roster soon. And when he does, Tromp will likely return to the Minors and allow the Braves to maintain quality depth at a position where it is rare.

“I haven’t felt bad when I’ve seen him out there when Travis has needed an off-day, because there’s still a good chance we can win the game,” Braves coach and former catcher Eddie Perez said. “I like the kid. He’s smart. He surprises me with how he talks about hitters and pitchers.”

The kid is actually not much of a kid anymore. Tromp is a 29-year-old who entered this season with just 29 career starts, 19 of which were made for the Giants in 2020. He has been in the Braves’ system since '22, but this marked the first time he got regular playing time at the big league level.

Tromp has hit .265 with a .663 OPS through his first 18 games (51 plate appearances) of the season. Those are decent numbers for a backup catcher. But the Aruba native has really thrived defensively. He has thrown out five of the nine runners who have attempted to steal against him. He is also one of 21 catchers (min. 250 pitches caught) credited with a +1 or better Catcher Framing Runs.

“I'm very happy with how things have been going, just based on the feedback that they've given me,” Tromp said. “I don't take that lightly because I really truly value our coaching staff’s opinion and just everybody that's around me every day. They know how hard I work and I think they appreciate that.”

Tromp’s success gave the Braves the confidence to give d’Arnaud regular rest over the past couple of months. d’Arnaud has been behind the plate for approximately 60 percent of the games since Murphy was injured. Not having to handle 80 percent (four out of every five games) should benefit the 35-year-old veteran as he spends the remainder of this season sharing the catching duties with Murphy.

One of this year’s biggest surprises has been Reynaldo López, whose 1.54 ERA would rank third among all MLB pitchers if he had enough innings to qualify. López has posted a 1.42 ERA in the four games Tromp has served as his catcher.

“I truly believe that I could catch every day, but I’m truly fortunate to be on this team,” Tromp said. “I feel good going forward.”