'Catching is gold': Pirates prospects Henry Davis, Endy Rodriguez absorb veteran advice
BRADENTON, Fla. — Austin Hedges arrived at spring training prepared for a crash course with the Pittsburgh Pirates, learning as fast as he could about the pitching staff while teaching two of their top-100 prospects as much as he could about catching in the major leagues.
Hedges realized he needed to raise his expectations soon after being shadowed by Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez, who showed strong foundations for the position to go with well-earned reputations that have them poised to be big pieces of the Pirates’ future.
“They have such a high floor already, so we don’t need to talk about the basic stuff,” Hedges said. “I can start talking about some of the details I’ve learned through lot of failure and some success in the big leagues, things to help them be the same guy every day.
“If I can pass on to 22-year-old guys some wisdom that I didn’t learn until I was 30, that will put them ahead of the curve. … If I can pass off a little bit of wisdom so they know how to communicate, especially with a guy who has a lot more time than them, it’s going to set the organization up for some success.”
Different paths
They are as different as night and day — the chiseled Davis is no-nonsense, while the smiling Rodriguez keeps things loose — yet have become close while climbing through the minor leagues and appear to be positioned to play for the Pirates sometime soon, perhaps this summer.
Drafted with the No. 1 overall pick of the MLB Draft out of Louisville in July 2021, the 23-year-old Davis was dominant at High-A Greensboro, slashing .342/.450/.585 in 22 games before being hit by a pitch that fractured his left wrist and caused him to miss the Futures Games and most of the second half of the season.
Despite batting .207 with eight doubles, four home runs and 18 RBIs in 31 games at Double-A Altoona, Davis said it didn’t disrupt his development because it allowed him to watch the game through a different lens. He charted pitch calling and sequencing and put himself in the minds of hitters and how he would approach each pitch.
Although he was hit by 20 pitches last season, Davis studied his stance in the offseason and found that it had more to do with erratic fastball command than it did with him crowding the plate.
“I just control what I can and move forward,” said Davis, who plans to wear a more padded protective wrist shield this season. “It was unfortunate. I didn’t want to get hit on the wrist and miss time, but I just took advantage of it any way I could.”
Acquired from the New York Mets in the three-team trade that sent Joe Musgrove to San Diego in January 2021, Rodriguez is a 22-year-old Dominican coming off a season where he slashed .323/.407/.590 with 39 doubles, 25 home runs and 95 RBIs across three levels. He started the season at High-A Greensboro, finished it at Triple-A Indianapolis and won the Honus Wagner Award as the Pirates’ minor league player of the year.
“It’s a good thing, to be the top prospect and have a great year last year,” Rodriguez said, “but the goal is to play in the big leagues, to stay healthy and try to get better more than anything and go to the big leagues and show my talent.”
Servant leaders
When Hedges broke into the majors with the San Diego Padres, one of his mentors was John Baker. Now the Pirates’ farm director, Baker advised Hedges when to show up and how to prepare to play.
That type of accountability is what Hedges wants to pass along to Davis and Rodriguez, who are learning the importance of the level of detail involved, building relationships and trust with pitchers and the nuances of calling and receiving a game in the majors.
“We’re very appreciative of that,” Davis said. “Not just me but the other younger catchers, trying to absorb every bit of information that we can. Not just listening to his conversations with us but his conversations with pitchers. He’s done it for a long time at the highest level behind the plate, and that’s something we all aspire to be. …
“It just takes a whole new meaning, especially when it becomes your full responsibility in pro ball, when you’re calling every pitch and you have to know the pitcher inside and out, know the situation with the hitter. It’s a responsibility none of us take lightly. Being able to impact the game on every single pitch is something we’re honored to do, really.”
Davis learned a lesson in servant leadership this offseason at Pirate City by catching every bullpen for reliever Chase De Jong, who was impressed that Davis showed up early to get his weightlifting workout and batting practice completed. That way, he was available and ready to catch when De Jong arrived at 8 a.m.
“He really took over and understood that being a major-league catcher is kind of a civil servant position,” De Jong said. “You do well if you help these guys do well. And he really kind of started to embody that, and I’m really proud of him because that wasn’t how he was. But he understood and was really coachable. He’s a competitor, a gamer and he wants to win. How can you not support that?”
Rodriguez has mingled with major leaguers and minor leaguers in the clubhouse and on the field this spring, flashing a smile with braces that shows his youth and a friendly personality that goes beyond his years.
“This is my game. I’m like that with every teammate,” Rodriguez said. “The catcher needs to be a leader. If you’re not being a good teammate, I don’t think you can be a leader. That’s life.”
Not only did Rodriguez perform at the plate but showed such fluid athleticism and versatility behind it that he played first base, second base, left field and designated hitter in addition to catcher last summer.
Most scouting services now regard Rodriguez as the Pirates’ top catching prospect, surpassing Davis in the top-100 rankings. Baseball America ranks Rodriguez No. 22 and Davis No. 73, but the gap is closer at FanGraphs (Nos. 22 and 38) and MLB Pipeline (Nos. 55 and 57). That Rodriguez is on the radar shouldn’t come as a surprise.
“Probably as he should be,” Hedges said. “He’s about as talented as I’ve seen, everything from catching to taking ground balls to hitting. He’s a good dude. He’s a good person who cares, and he’s got a smile on his face every day. He asks questions. He’s helping. He’s talking. It’s a very rare thing for young guys to be confident enough in themselves to have a smile on their face every day because no matter how it’s going, you have tons of bad days in this game. I think he’s ahead of the game with that, with the care level, not to mention the talent. The talent is off the charts. For the catching in this organization, the sky’s the limit. It’s been a joy to work with him so far.”
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said at the winter meetings that the plan is for both to start the season in the minors, with Rodriguez likely ticketed for Triple-A Indianapolis and Davis returning to Double-A Altoona. Davis cited Baltimore’s promotion of Adley Rutschman as a blueprint for promoting a rookie catcher, as the Orioles went from 16-24 in late May to finishing 83-79 a year after a 110-loss season.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton discusses how the organization’s catching depth and top prospects Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez. pic.twitter.com/65orKd3Ae1
— Kevin Gorman (@KevinGormanPGH) February 25, 2023
Their time in major league camp at Pirate City and Grapefruit League games this spring should be invaluable to the development of Davis and Rodriguez, especially their time spent watching and catching alongside Hedges, Kevin Plawecki, Jason Delay and Tyler Heineman.
Manager Derek Shelton said the Pirates have highlighted catcher as a key position in their system and stressed the importance of their top two prospects transitioning to the upper levels of the minor leagues.
“Those guys have really bought into listening and learning from the group that we have here, whether it’s the guys we brought in or the guys who had experience last year,” Shelton said of Davis and Rodriguez. “You can never have too much catching depth. The fact that we’ve drafted or developed the two guys you’re talking about is really important because catching is gold in the industry.”
So the Pirates are going to treat Davis and Rodriguez like treasure.
Kevin Gorman is a TribLive reporter covering the Pirates. A Baldwin native and Penn State graduate, he joined the Trib in 1999 and has covered high school sports, Pitt football and basketball and was a sports columnist for 10 years. He can be reached at kgorman@triblive.com.
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