Hello, Pirates fans. This year's PiratesFest, held on Saturday, featured a ton of fun events, from hitting pitches off players to pierogi races and eating contests. We also got to hear from quite a few Pirates before they head to Spring Training for the 2024 season. 

PITTSBURGH -- Henry Davis knew from his exit meetings after the 2023 season what his offseason focus would be. The Pirates wanted him to become the full-time Major League catcher they knew he could be.

Davis began his big league career with 417 1/3 innings of work in right field compared with only two innings behind the plate in 2023. The organization saw his counterpart, Endy Rodríguez, as the more polished defensive catcher when the two were called up within a month of each other. 

But with Rodríguez out for the season due to UCL surgery and a flexor tendon repair in his right arm, there’s a clear path for Davis to get the bulk of the reps behind the plate alongside Jason Delay.

“The matter of fact is, injuries can happen at any time,” Davis said. “I was injured last year. I've been injured in the past. People get hurt all the time. We put our bodies on the line every day, so there's a situation where you've got to be prepared to pivot.”

Davis has been preparing for this opportunity long before it arose. He caught bullpens last season and worked behind the scenes to get acclimated to the Pirates’ pitching staff, which he said has been the biggest focus for him instead of one facet of defense in particular.

“I know there's a lot of different ways and certain things are easier to measure than others, but at the end of the day, I'll grade myself on if guys want to throw to me or not, and that's a really good indicator of if you can really get on the same page as a guy,” he said.

In addition to his workouts and general work, Davis has split time between two important areas: Driveline in Kent, Wash., and the Pirates’ complex in Bradenton, Fla.

How much has Driveline helped? 

"More than I thought it would, honestly,” Davis said. “I kind of always look for … things as a player to get an edge or get a percent. But it's kind of blown me away, I've been very happy with it." 

Being in Bradenton has allowed him to catch big league guys who have visited the complex this offseason, as well as such up-and-comers as the Pirates’ No. 1 prospect, Paul Skenes, who is seen as being able to reach the big league club in 2024 if he’s healthy. Both Davis and Skenes were No. 1 overall Draft picks by the Pirates in 2021 and 2023, respectively, so their first time as a pitcher-catcher battery will be a momentous occasion in Pittsburgh.

"He's great,” Davis said of Skenes. “He's super intense. A winner." 

Going around the country, putting in the extra work, holding himself to a high standard: Those are just a few things that make Davis who he is. He’s taken on new positions and worked hard in the background to have the opportunity he has this season. And when you’re wired like Davis, the extra work hardly feels like work.

“It's a privilege. I'm blessed by God to play this game, truly,” Davis said. “Dreamed of it every moment since I was a kid and really worked for it. So, while I'm here, [I’m] doing everything I can to stay here as long as I can.”

• Here’s how Oneil Cruz feels in his own words, as interpreted by Stephen Morales: “All good. 100% now. Everything’s like it’s supposed to be.” 

After fracturing his left fibula in a collision at home plate when he awkwardly slid into White Sox catcher Seby Zavala, the final thing Cruz needed to do to prove his readiness to himself was slide into bases. But as part of his progression at the Pirates’ academy in the Dominican Republic, Cruz slid while getting game action.

Morales was there to witness it.

“That was my worry, too,” Morales said of Cruz sliding, “but he went right through it. It was like riding a bike.”

• Fourteen Pirates players made their MLB debuts in 2023, including Jared Triolo, who became one of the best breakout stories of the season as he juggled work at multiple infield positions. He still carries four gloves in his car to practice this offseason and is ready for anything.

When asked if anyone had a big impact on him as a rookie, Triolo gave a name that probably would have been my 10th or 15th guess: reliever Ryan Borucki.

“Kind of an out-of-the-ordinary one here was Borucki,” Triolo said. “I feel like me and him got along in the clubhouse, just seeing him in Triple-A. I don't think I was playing when he was playing, but just watching him, being around him, he looked after me a little bit there. And then when we came up here, he was a good guy."

• Second base figures to be one of the deepest competitions at Spring Training. I can count at least five guys who have a shot at the position next season, but maybe I should add a surprising sixth: Connor Joe.

OK, maybe it’s not as realistic, but Joe has been working to make himself as versatile as possible so he gets as many opportunities as possible, and that includes taking grounders at second. It would be an interesting look for a player who has split time between the outfield corners and increased his workload at first over the past three seasons.

“I've expressed that I'm willing to move there, and I've been working there in the offseason,” Joe said. “But I've been working everywhere in the offseason. I think it's good and beneficial to get different angles at different spots.”

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