Early Takeaways From Pirates’ Spring Training (+)
BRADENTON, Fla. — Baseball is back. Pittsburgh Pirates’ spring training officially began when pitchers and catchers reported on Wednesday.
It’s good to see baseball activities resume at Pirate City in Bradenton after a long, cold winter in the city of Pittsburgh. I heard it was snowing back home on Friday — yikes.
It’s early, extremely early in fact. But there are still certain things that have already become clear in the few days since the start of camp.
Here are a few early takeaways for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Henry Davis’ BPs Have Been Impressive
There is certainly a lot of unknown surrounding Henry Davis’ status behind the plate as a defender. Manager Derek Shelton and general manager Ben Cherington noted Davis will be in competition for the second catcher spot on the roster alongside Yasmani Grandal.
While it may be unclear what happens to Davis defensively, he looks ready to take a jump at the plate. His batting practice sessions have been that impressive. Yes, I get that it’s only batting practice, but the ball is consistently jumping off of his bat. That’s at least a promising sign.
Davis struggled at the plate during his first action in the major leagues last season. He does, however, have a strong track record at the plate during his time in the minors.
Even if his defense remains suspect, Davis could have the edge in the competition over Jason Delay and Ali Sánchez if he forces the Pirates’ hand with his performance at the plate.
Paul Skenes Looks as Advertised
Paul Skenes, the top pick in last year’s draft, had his first spring-training bullpen on Thursday. What we’ve heard is what we’ve seen.
Firstly, Skenes is a substantial human being. If seeing him pitch off of a mound wasn’t enough, my neck is sore from looking up at him during media scrums — and I’m 6-foot-2.
Secondly, Skenes’ stuff looks good. His fastball is lively and makes a distinguished sound when hitting the catcher’s mitt. His slider, meanwhile, might be as good as his fastball.
Will Skenes be part of the Pirates’ opening day roster? Probably not. But he will be fun to watch this year in the minor leagues, and it probably won’t be long until he’s taking the mound at PNC Park.
Oh yeah, if you needed further proof that he throws hard, Skenes broke Quinn Priester’s glove while playing catch.
There Will be Plenty of Competition
Some spots on the Pittsburgh Pirates’ roster are already settled, barring anything unforeseen.
Several key areas, however, are yet to be settled. Expect to see competition for at least one spot in the starting rotation — two if the Pirates don’t bring in a free agent or make a trade. Second base and right field are also open.
It’s not even worth predicting who will win each battle. There is so much to be determined between practice and Grapefruit League games.
Different Feel This Year
It doesn’t mean much at the current stage, but there is a different feel at spring training this season.
The Pirates won 76 games last season, 14 more than they did in 2022. Every team is optimistic once camp opens up, but it genuinely feels like the Pittsburgh Pirates’ players have a strong belief they can compete for a playoff spot this season.
In my opinion, it will take a lot to get there. For starters, they will need another starting pitcher. A team simply cannot make a push for the postseason with two-fifths of their rotation in question.
Even with another starting pitcher in the mix, the Pirates will need to receive substantial improvements from several young players.
They do, however, have some areas of strength, notably the bullpen. David Bednar, Aroldis Chapman, Colin Holderman and Carmen Mlodzinski handling the late innings and high-leverage situations will help a suspect rotation by shortening games.
A lot has to play out before anyone starts dreaming of another ‘Buctober,’ but genuine belief is a step in the right direction, if nothing else.