Perrotto: Maybe I Was Wrong About Henry Davis

My only pet peeve about Pittsburgh Pirates’ fans is their rush to judgment.

A player has a good day, and he’s going to the All-Star Game. A player has a bad day, and he should be made to hitchhike to Indianapolis.

I understand the frustration. The Pirates have had losing seasons in 28 of the past 32 years. The fans are entitled to mood swings.

However, I often caution that it is not wise to rush to judgment. Baseball has the longest season of all the professional sports, and things tend to unfold on their own timeline in this game.

With that, I offer a mea culpa.

I might have rushed to judgment on Henry Davis at the end of last season. I could have given up on him too soon.

Davis played in 99 games for the Pirates during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, and his performance did nothing to suggest to me that he could be a competent major-league player.

Davis had a .191/.283/.307 slash line with eight home runs and 114 strikeouts in 377 plate appearances. His defensive metrics were awful as both a catcher and right fielder, and scouts confirmed that those numbers were in line with Davis’ poor play in the field.

Last winter, I all but wrote off Davis’ chances of playing for the Pirates again.

I believed he was the fourth-best catcher, despite being the first overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft, on the Pirates’ depth chart behind Joey Bart, Endy Rodriguez, and Jason Delay. I felt Davis was as big of a change-of-scenery candidate as any Pirates player in recent memory.

Well, I might have been wrong. Davis is beginning to look like he has a future in the big leagues after all.

Davis was the hero Saturday when his solo home run in the seventh inning broke a 1-1 tie and lifted the Pirates to a 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at PNC Park. It was Davis’ second homer in as many games as he went deep Friday night in a 5-4 win.

Anyone could homer on back-to-back days, but Davis’ longball on Saturday was impressive, beyond being the game-winning hit.

The homer came on a tough pitch from a quality pitcher. Left-hander Ranger Suarez threw a changeup that was well inside and off the plate, yet Davis turned the pitch around and drove it 401 feet to left-center field, one of the deepest parts of the park.

“He earned that one,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “That’s a long way out there. To get it and put a good swing on it like that in that moment, you earn it when you go anywhere out there in left-center.”

Davis said the home run came in part because of a simplified approach at the plate. He is an admitted overthinker who tends to be a perfectionist.

While Davis’ work ethic and serious approach are admirable, they have also worked against the 25-year-old at times while in the big leagues. However, since taking over as the starting catcher since Bart went on the injured list with a concussion on May 28, Davis has decided to quit stressing.

“Honestly, of late I’ve just been swinging at pitches that look good to hit,” Davis said. “Even the changeup today, I just kind of saw it well and swing at it. Keep it as simple as that. I think I have a tendency to outsmart myself at the plate, think about what are they trying to do? I’m just scrapping that. If it looks good, swing at it.

“I’m just trying to have good at-bats, honestly. Every day is a new day. I can be 0 for 4 today and have the best game of my life tomorrow. You could have the best game of my life and go 0 for 4 the next day. Just because trying to have good at-bats, stay ready to play no matter what and really keep it as simple as that.”

It’s amazing what someone can accomplish with a clear mind. And Henry Davis is starting to make me think about changing my mind.