It’s funny how things work out in baseball.
A year ago, one of the biggest questions for the Pittsburgh Pirates was who their next catcher would be. Was it Henry Davis or Endy Rodriguez?
Rodriguez is sitting out the season while recovering from Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery. Davis is playing at Triple-A Indianapolis.
And the catcher of the future could be a player who wasn’t even part of the organization.
That would be Joey Bart. The 27-year-old is certainly the catcher of the present.
The Pirates acquired Bart in a trade from the San Francisco Giants in the first full week of the season, and he is living up to the promise he showed during his college days at Georgia Tech.
Bart provided one of the Pirates’ few bright spots on Sunday, hitting a two-run home run in a 10-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners at PNC Park. Bart’s two doubles helped the Pirates beat the Mariners 7-2 a day earlier.
Bart reached a career high on Sunday with his 12th Home run of the season. The five-year veteran’s previous record was set two years ago with the Giants. Bart went a total of 65 games without a home run with San Francisco in the 2020, 2021 and 2023 seasons.
In addition, he hit 12 home runs in just 56 games and has a slash line of .277/.351/.532. He has scored 36 runs, 11 more than third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, despite playing 40 fewer games.
Bart’s success was unexpected when the Pirates sent minor league pitcher Austin Strickland to the Giants for him on August 2. After failing in San Francisco, it was fair to wonder if Bart would be a short-term solution with the Pirates until Jason Delay, who backs up Davis, returned from a knee injury.
Instead, Bart plays like someone who will stay with the Pirates long-term, living up to the hype that surrounded him in 2018 when he was selected by the Giants with the second pick in the first round of the amateur draft as the likely successor to seven-time All-Star Buster Posey.
So why has Bart become so successful with the Pirates? Manager Derek Shelton says there are several reasons.
“First, it’s time. Not everything goes according to plan the way everyone wants it to,” Shelton said. “Second, I think he’s made some adjustments. And we’re seeing the fruits of those adjustments. But third, it’s a matter of opportunity, and that has to do with time. And we’re seeing the player that a lot of people thought was going to come onto the scene when he came out of Georgia Tech, and that’s the guy he’s going to be.”
“But it takes time. I mean, it’s not a straight line in the big leagues. It’s not like, ‘Okay, you get drafted, you’re good, now you go to the big leagues and have success.’ I wish it were. It would be a hell of a lot easier to handle if it happened that way. But it just isn’t. And I think we see the hard work he’s put in and then an opportunity.”
Bart’s breakout has created an interesting dilemma. Rodriguez should be healthy when spring training begins next February, and Davis is tearing up Triple-A with a .313/.408/.573 slash line and 12 home runs in 51 games in Indianapolis after failing at the major league level for the second straight year.
Rodriguez gives the Pirates options due to his versatility, as he has also played first base, second base, and all three outfield positions in the minor leagues. It’s easy to imagine Rodriguez being the Pirates’ opening day first baseman next year.
Davis was a disaster in right field as a rookie last year and might be best used as a designated hitter. However, if Andrew McCutchen decides to play again next season – and all indications are that he will be back in 2025 – then Davis would have few DH batting opportunities.
It will be interesting to see how it all turns out, but Bart has added another element to the “catcher of the future” conversation.
