NEW YORK -- Travis d'Arnaud's rookie season included a two-week trip to the minor leagues to restore his confidence and regain his ability to hit.
Now it also will include season-ending surgery.
The New York Mets announced Friday that d'Arnaud will miss this weekend's final series against the Houston Astros, and will undergo surgery Wednesday to remove bone chips from his right elbow. Tests taken this week showed no more serious damage to d'Arnaud's elbow, and the procedure shouldn't affect his offseason routine or his 2015 season.
D'Arnaud ends the season with a .242 batting average and 13 home runs, the most among National League rookies. He hit .272 with 10 home runs in 69 games after a 2½-week trip to Triple-A Las Vegas in June.
"Not giving up and keep fighting, that was the main thing I was proud of," d'Arnaud said. "I know now I can trust myself. What happened was probably meant to happen."
While the 25-year-old d'Arnaud has shown great promise offensively, his defense has been subpar. D'Arnaud has thrown out only 14 of 72 runners who attempted to steal. He leads the National League with 12 passed balls, and has been behind the plate for 39 wild pitches.
"I want to improve on that tremendously," d'Arnaud said. "That's my goal." D'Arnaud said he plans to study what Yadier Molina, Buster Posey and other top catchers do.
Mets manager Terry Collins said he thinks the bone chips led to some of d'Arnaud's throwing problems, but d'Arnaud rejected that as an excuse. He said that until the chips broke away from the bone, apparently on a throw he made Tuesday night in Washington, he wasn't even aware that he had a bone spur.
"I thought it was just being tired," he said.
Collins praised d'Arnaud for the progress he has made at the plate.
"When you get sent down, it's tough to take," Collins said. "But he looked in the mirror. Now he has a whole different approach. He's not afraid to swing. He's not afraid to swing and miss. I told him, 'You're going to look back and be proud of what you accomplished. You're over the hard part.'
"It's no longer potential. It's legit."