Henry Davis has given the Pirates real value behind the plate. The problem is that value may no longer be enough to keep him in Pittsburgh.
The former No. 1 overall pick has grown into a legitimate major-league catcher, and that part of his game is not in question. He works well with the pitching staff, has taken on a leadership role behind the plate, and opposing runners clearly think twice before challenging his arm.
Teams have attempted roughly half as many stolen bases against him as they do against the average catcher, and that kind of control matters. Give opponents 20 or 30 more chances over a season and some of those chances become runs.
That defensive impact is real. It just comes with a problem that the Pirates can no longer ignore.
His offense this season looks a lot like what he’s shown over the course of his career, and for a club still trying to find more production in its lineup, that’s not enough. The bat has not taken the step forward Pittsburgh needed, and that changes the conversation around his future.
It also helps explain why a trade-deadline rumor now feels more meaningful. Ben Cherington reportedly looked into the possibility of trading for Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman, who has put together an .841 OPS with 38 home runs this season. Goodman does not bring the same defensive value Davis does, but the offensive upside would make for a very different kind of catcher situation.
The Pirates do not have to land Goodman specifically this winter for the point to matter. The fact that Cherington was even looking in that market says plenty. Pittsburgh appears to know catcher is one of the spots where it might be able to add real offense.
Rafael Flores Jr. only adds to that picture. He has been one of the Pirates’ best second-half developments, showing legitimate pop while also handling catching duties.
If Pittsburgh paired Flores with another catcher built more for offense, the position could look a lot different by 2027. And if that happens, Davis may be the odd man out.
There is still a case for what Davis has already done for the organization. Pittsburgh took him No. 1 overall in 2021, a move that allowed the club to save enough bonus-pool money to sign Bubba Chandler and Lonnie White Jr. later in that draft. Chandler has since become one of the organization’s most important young pitchers.
Davis helped make that possible, and that should remain part of the story even if his time as a Pirate winds down.
There is also something notable about what Pittsburgh got from its catching group this season as a whole. Injuries kept shuffling the depth chart, but the group still delivered solid defense and more offense than most would have expected.
That kind of balance may not be easy to recreate next season. The Pirates probably should not count on everything lining up so neatly again, which is why some hard choices could be coming.
Davis deserves credit for turning himself into such a strong defensive catcher after entering pro ball mostly known for his bat. But at this point, the Pirates have reached the stage where improvement has to outweigh pedigree.
Flores has improved at the plate. Davis has not. And if Pittsburgh believes it can find another catcher who brings significantly more offense, it should go after that upgrade.
Davis may never become the franchise centerpiece the Pirates hoped they were getting when they took him first overall. Even so, his draft helped bring Chandler into the system, his defense steadied one of the game’s toughest positions, and his presence has mattered in the build toward whatever comes next.
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