Amid offensive struggles, Pirates demote catcher Henry Davis to Triple-A
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As one of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ No. 1 overall draft picks closes in on a highly anticipated MLB debut, Friday afternoon brought news that another will navigate an early career disruption.
All eyes are on pitcher Paul Skenes, selected atop the 2023 MLB Draft by the Pirates, who is expected to join the club in the near future.
Catcher Henry Davis, chosen first overall in the 2021 MLB Draft, was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday amid a frustrating start to the season.
In a corresponding transaction, fellow catcher Yasmani Grandal was activated from the 10-day injured list, ending his rehabilitation assignment with the Indians.
Davis, 24, is batting .162 through 23 games and 68 at-bats while serving as the Pirates’ primary catcher.
He has three doubles, zero home runs and four RBIs while striking out in 43% of his at-bats.
“The big thing is, offensively, there are some adjustments that have to be made,” manager Derek Shelton said. “I think there’s some adjustments that the major-league game has kind of showed him that need to be made.
“… I think the thing that we know about Henry is he’s probably one of the hardest workers I’ve ever been around at the major-league level. He’s going to go down there with a task and work at it.”
Davis made his MLB debut last year, playing in 62 games and hitting .213 with seven homers and 24 RBIs.
He enjoyed a promising spring training with the Pirates, batting .310 with four homers and 12 RBIs through 16 Grapefruit League contests.
He will rejoin the Indians, with whom he hit .375 in 14 games last year.
Grandal, who signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Pirates in February, looks set to make his 2024 debut with the club soon.
The 35-year-old presumably will split catching duties with Joey Bart for the foreseeable future.
Sidelined with left plantar fasciitis in late March, Grandal endured a stint on the injured list before heading to Indianapolis on a rehab assignment.
There, he hit .257 with a home run, two doubles and 11 RBIs in nine games and 35 at-bats.
“No. 1, the veteran-ness — he will help in terms of our pitch sequencing and our game planning because he’s been here with the exception of the time in (Indianapolis),” Shelton said. “He gives us a left-handed hitter, a switch hitter, so I think there’s a lot of things that he brings.”