Who Emerges from Crowded Outfield as Pirates Right Fielder?
The Pittsburgh Pirates enter spring training with several candidates competing for playing time in the outfield. Which one emerges as the Pirates right fielder?
Bryan Reynolds, the Pirates’ best player, is firmly entrenched in left field. Center field is certain to be anchored by Jack Suwinski, their best power hitter, once again. Conversely, there are a host of candidates who could man right field in Pittsburgh in 2024. Many of these could find their names on the lineup card as the designated hitter as well.
Who Emerges as the Pirates’ Right Fielder
Can Henry Davis catch on?
How the outfield shapes up largely depends on whether Henry Davis is used as a catcher in 2024. Davis, 24, was the Pirates’ first pick in the June 2021 Amateur Draft. He was drafted as a catcher and used there in the minors until being given a crash course in the outfield before being called up to the big club last year. Fellow catcher Endy Rodriguez was called up around the same time. Manager Derek Shelton paid lip service to the notion that both would see playing time behind the dish.
But it was Rodriguez who saw most of the action there. The primary backup was Austin Hedges, until he was traded, and then Jason Delay. Davis, on the other hand, was back there for two meaningless innings. Meanwhile, Davis was used in right field, where he showed a strong arm but often looked uncomfortable. In 49 games there, he registered -17 Fielding Runs Above Average and -9 Defensive Runs Saved.
Power Hitting vs. Pitch Framing
With Rodriguez out for the season, general manager Ben Cherington is on record saying Davis will get every opportunity to be the catcher next year. We’ll see about that. Last season, the organization clearly favored Rodriguez and Delay at that position. Delay would eventually become the personal catcher for Mitch Keller during the latter’s run of success. The analytically hip Pirates brain trust has shown they clearly place a premium on pitch-framing skills. Delay has them. Davis will need to develop them to garner any serious playing time behind the plate. Davis, whose power-hitting potential is sorely needed (he has 25 minor-league home runs in 122 games over three seasons, about the equivalent of a full major-league season for a catcher) could be the one who emerges from the crowded outfield as the Pirates’ primary right fielder. Or could he?
The Return of Andrew McCutchen (Again)
Veteran Andrew McCutchen, one of the Pirates’ better hitters in 2023 at .256/.378/.397, 12 HR, and 43 RBI, is back under another one-year contract. He was used primarily as a designated hitter last season, appearing in only eight games in the outfield, and none after May 30. There is speculation that he’ll be the main go-to as the designated hitter in 2024 as well. Not so fast. Last year, an injury to his throwing arm prevented him from playing in the field after May. He returned to Pittsburgh in 2023 wanting to see significant time in the outfield, and the Pirates wanted that, too.
