Henry Davis is getting another shot in Pittsburgh. On Sunday, the 2021 first overall pick went 2-for-4 with Indianapolis. Following the game, Jason Mackey reported that Davis would be returning to the Pirates.
Davis homered on May 16th, and since then has hit .339/.446/.790 in 74 plate appearances, with seven homers. He’s struck out 24.3% of the time, while walking 9.5% during that span.
The Pirates have been using Grant Koch in the majors since May 29th, giving Davis a few extra days in Triple-A. Davis hit .294/.400/.529 with one homer in 20 plate appearances across the extra five games.
Matt Gorski has also been on a tear in Triple-A since May 16th. Gorski homered on Sunday. He’s batting .328/.370/.906 in 73 plate appearances, with ten homers during this span. Gorski isn’t on the 40-man roster, making a callup a bit more difficult than Davis. Gorski also looks like he deserves a shot with his continued hitting.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS lost 8-5
- DH Henry Davis: 2-for-4
- RF Matt Gorski: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI
- SS Liover Peguero: 2-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI
- RHP Drake Fellows: 3.0 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
- LF Canaan Smith-Njigba: 1-for-4, 2B
Drake Fellows made his Triple-A debut. The 26-year-old was acquired in the Joe Musgrove trade prior to 2021, after being a 6th round pick out of Vanderbilt in 2019. He didn’t make his debut in 2019, and had pitched 23.2 innings since then, due to injuries. He’s been rehabbing this year through several levels. In 17 innings with Double-A, he had a 1.59 ERA and an 18:9 K/BB ratio. Catcher Dylan Shockley ended up pitching two innings in this game, allowing one run on one hit. Jason Delay played his first full game behind the plate in his rehab work.
STATCAST HEROES
The hardest hit of the day was a 105.3 MPH single from Henry Davis. The home run from Matt Gorski traveled 343 feet at 102.7 MPH. Drake Fellows had three whiffs on ten swings against his slider, with six more called strikes. He had a five-pitch mix, but mostly led with the sinker/slider approach. Dylan Shockley had three whiffs on 11 swings against his four-seam fastball, which averaged 88.4 MPH, touching 90.5. He also threw a curveball, changeup, and slider. Shockley is probably the best defensive catcher in the system.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 10-4
- 2B Tsung-Che Cheng: 1-for-3, BB, 2 R
- 1B Joe Perez: 1-for-3, 2 RBI
- RF Jase Bowen: 1-for-4
- CF Sammy Siani: 1-for-4
- LF Tres Gonzales: 1-for-4, RBI
Sean Sullivan had a rare bad outing, allowing five runs, two earned, in 3.1 innings. He walked three and struck out one. Altoona didn’t get any extra base hits from their offense.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO was cancelled due to rain.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 2-1
- RHP Scott Randall: 3.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
- LHP Connor Oliver: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K
- SS Kalae Harrison: 2-for-3, BB
- DH Esmerlyn Valdez: 1-for-3, 2B, BB
- RHP Garrett McMillan: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Scott Randall was acquired in December 2022 for Diego Castillo. He missed all of 2023 with Tommy John, and is now pitching in his first season with the Pirates. The 25-year-old previously pitched five shutout innings in two appearances in the FCL. This was his debut in Single-A. Connor Oliver, who was acquired for Colin Selby this year, pitched three shutout innings.
STATCAST HEROES
Oliver led with his curveball in Sunday’s outing. He threw the pitch 19 times, getting six whiffs on nine swings, with five more called strikes for a 58% CSW. The pitch sits upper 70s with 2748 RPMs of average spin, and pairs with his 91 MPH fastball.
TODAY’S SCHEDULE
- The full-season teams are off on Monday.
- Rookie: FCL Pirates, 12:00 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
