Henry Davis has made his major league debut and while he was drafted as a catcher, he’s currently being used in Pittsburgh as an outfielder/designated hitter.
Speaking on The Cook & Joe Show during his weekly segment on Tuesday, Pirates Manager Derek Shelton said that Davis is here to help boost the Pirates offense, for now.
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The only catching experience he will get, again, at this time, is in the bullpen.
The Pirate are essentially carrying three catchers, but not using Davis.
Instead, they’re keeping Austin Hedges and Jason Delay on the roster.
To be fair to the Pirates, Hedges was signed for his defense but he’s currently batting .172 this season.
In 35 games, Delay is batting .293, but he isn’t the long-term answer.
Their bats are now why they’re still on the team, its’ the defense, says Shelton.
“Defensively they’re the best catching tandem in baseball and it’s by a wide margin,” said Shelton.
The Pirates are struggling to score runs and with Hedges getting a majority of the starts you’re not getting much production from your catcher.
“I understand that, but if you also look, he’s the top framer in baseball and pitching is important also,” said Shelton, pointing out the Pirates are dealing with multiple issues.
During this seven-game losing streak the Pirates have been outscored 51-17.
Yes, defense is important, but maybe scoring a few runs is a little more important than pitch framing, with teams out scoring you by three times in the past week.
As Ron Cook says, having Hedges in the lineup is just when pitchers had to hit, you’re essentially giving away an out almost every time he is up.
But he can frame the hell out of a pitch for Roansy Contreras, only for it to get blasted into the left field seats.