For a number of years now, the Pirates have had a few catchers as two of their high prospects. Henry Davis was taken with the primary general decide within the 2021 draft and has been beneath the microscope ever since. Endy Rodríguez was acquired within the January 2021 three-team commerce that despatched Joe Musgrove to the Padres and was declared Pittsburgh’s high prospect by Baseball America going into 2023.
There’s now a 3rd title within the combine as Joey Bart had his long-awaited breakout in 2024. Chosen second general by the Giants in 2018, he struggled to ascertain himself on the massive league degree in San Francisco and had exhausted his possibility years by the top of 2023. He held onto his roster spot till the top of spring coaching 2024 however was designated for task at the moment, getting flipped to the Pirates for minor league righty Austin Strickland.
Bart missed a while resulting from harm this yr however obtained into 80 video games for the Bucs and hit 13 homers. He slashed .265/.337/.462 general for a wRC+ of 121, indicating he was 21% higher than league common. His protection wasn’t extremely regarded however that type of offense behind the plate is difficult to come back by and was particularly helpful on a Pittsburgh group that discovered it troublesome to attain runs. Amongst catchers with not less than 250 plate appearances, Bart’s 121 wRC+ was fourth behind the Contreras brothers and Iván Herrera. With the identical plate look threshold, he led all Pirate hitters in that stat.
Now there may be theoretically a logjam with the three guys, as most golf equipment solely roster two catchers at a time. The designated hitter spot in all probability doesn’t assist, with Andrew McCutchen more likely to be in there. He’s technically heading into free company now however he and the Pirates appear to have an settlement whereby they’ll preserve reupping with one another till he’s able to retire. He’s now 38 years outdated however was one of many membership’s solely good hitters in 2024. For guys with 250 plate appearances, solely Bart, Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and McCutchen had been above common by wRC+.
Rodríguez debuted in 2023 and didn’t hit a lot, with a .220/.284/.328 batting line and 65 wRC+ in his first 204 plate appearances. Nevertheless, his protection was universally praised and he has hit higher within the minors. He has slashed .295/.383/.506 on the farm general and .285/.362/.450 on the Triple-A degree. In December of final yr, he underwent surgical procedure on the UCL and flexor tendon in his throwing elbow and missed the complete massive league season in 2024. He began a rehab task in mid-September and performed in a handful of minor league video games, suggesting he needs to be good to go for 2025.
Davis has had a extra infuriating profession up to now, as he has destroyed minor league pitching however struggled badly within the majors. In 377 main league plate appearances up to now, he has struck out in 30.2% of them and hit .191/.283/.307 for a wRC+ of 61. However for the reason that begin of 2023, he has a 13.7% stroll charge and 21.5% strikeout charge within the minors, serving to him produce a mixed .302/.424/.550 line and 158 wRC+.
All of this can result in some fascinating selections for the Bucs. Bart isn’t nice defensively however is a giant bat on a membership that didn’t have many this yr. Rodríguez has performed another positions however a giant a part of his enchantment is his sturdy work behind the plate. Davis has additionally dabbled in taking part in the outfield however the offensive expectations are even greater at that place than at catcher, so transferring him into the outfield combine would put much more strain on his bat.
Davis and Rodríguez nonetheless have choices, so it’s doable that the Pirates might preserve all three, with two of them within the majors and one in Triple-A. However Rodríguez is already a stable defender by massive league requirements and has accomplished loads of hitting within the minors, making it pretty wasteful to have him again down there. Davis doesn’t have a lot left to show on the farm together with his massive numbers there. Arguably, the perfect factor for him is to see extra massive league pitching and get accustomed to it.
One other path they may select is buying and selling considered one of these three. Doing so would sacrifice some depth however Jason Delay can be on the 40-man roster and remains to be optionable. However there are additionally arguments towards buying and selling every of the three.
Davis may really feel expendable in the meanwhile together with his comparatively weaker protection and the truth that he hasn’t put it collectively offensively simply but, however the path of Bart is a cautionary story. The Giants would absolutely love a mulligan on letting him go and the Pirates are in all probability conscious that they may find yourself on the opposite aspect of such a commerce. On condition that Davis was such a extremely regarded prospect, it’s not onerous to think about them flipping him and shortly regretting it once they have to look at him have his breakout elsewhere.
It wouldn’t be a great time to commerce Rodríguez both, as he’s coming off a totally misplaced season. With some well being and a step ahead on the plate, he might enhance his worth tremendously this yr and down the road.
Promoting excessive on Bart could be interesting as a result of they grabbed him at such a low level and noticed him take a giant step ahead. However as talked about, the membership had so few productive hitters in 2024 and subtracting considered one of them could be a dangerous ploy.
Although there’s potential downsides with these concerns, the Pirates may give it some thought anyway. They typically don’t spend a ton of cash in free company however have to improve the roster someway. Basic supervisor Ben Cherington has had his job since November of 2019 and the membership has been caught beneath .500 since then. They had been rebuilding for the primary few years of his tenure however expectations have been raised with some flashes of profitable baseball up to now two campaigns. Sadly, they completed with a 76-86 document each final yr and this yr, maybe resulting in a little bit of desperation in getting over the hump in 2025.
It’s doable that the free agent catching market might work of their favor this winter. The most effective accessible backstops are guys like Danny Jansen, Carson Kelly and Kyle Higashioka. Jansen is coming off a nightmare season and is a giant query mark proper now. Higashioka is coming off a profession yr however will flip 35 in April, making it truthful to surprise if he simply peaked. Kelly has been inconsistent in his profession and extra okay than nice even when at his finest. The Cardinals will doubtless make Willson Contreras accessible on the commerce market however he has a dear contract and is about to show 33 years outdated. Christian Vázquez is in the same state of affairs to Contreras as a dear veteran however with the offense and protection flipped, as Vázquez is a glove-first man and Contreras bat-first.
A number of golf equipment might use assist behind the plate, with the Rays, Padres, Nationals, Cubs, Reds, Phillies and Braves simply a number of the potentialities. All three of Pittsburgh’s catchers are low cost, with Davis and Rodríguez nonetheless of their pre-arb years and Bart simply attending to arbitration for the primary time. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz tasks Bart for a modest $1.8MM wage in 2025, not a lot above subsequent yr’s $760K league minimal. These inexpensive salaries would naturally enchantment to golf equipment with budgetary or aggressive stability tax issues.
What do you suppose the Pirates ought to do with their many catching choices? Have your say within the ballot beneath!