ALTOONA, Pa. -- Henry Davis is such a laser-focused, goal-oriented young man, and he usually plays things close to the vest with most of his public comments.
But a couple of things he said during Altoona Curve media day on Monday really made some ears perk up -- and showed exactly why he's such a promising leader, as well as a baseball player.
"I want to be in Pittsburgh right now. Right now," the overall No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft said matter of factly.
But the prized catching prospect didn't mean it in an impatient kind of way.
As Davis noted, it's OK for any player to be kind of "pissed off" about some of the ups and downs of the minor-league process. As long as, Davis pointed out, said player understands the process and what it takes work his way up the ladder.
The question came about because this year's Curve roster has a number of older or more experienced players, ranging from 33-year-old Drew Maggi to slugger Mason Martin, who has been sent back down to Class AA after being in Class AAA last season.
In short, there are a number of players who are back in Class AA who probably feel they shouldn't be there. Even Davis, who surely was hoping to start the season in Class AAA.
"I don't know if they should be disappointed," Davis said of being assigned to a lower level than expected. "You can be pissed off. You can be passionate about (it), you can care. Everybody in this locker room should be upset that they're here. And I think everybody in the (Class AAA) locker room should be upset that they're there.
"I think everybody's goal in our system is to be in Pittsburgh. I don't think anybody will be happy at any affiliate. You know what I mean? Like, our goal is to play in Pittsburgh. Our goal is to win in Pittsburgh. So, it's OK to be pissed off. But, it's about how do you channel that?
"If you let that control how you play, and if you let that control your conduct, shame on you. But you say, 'You know what, let's go. I'll show them, and I'm gonna work as hard as I can to be so good that there's no choice but for me to be in Pittsburgh.' I think that's a great attitude. And I think there's no shame in saying that."
That's when Davis offered up his, "I want to be in Pittsburgh right now. Right now.
"I think everybody in the locker room feels the same way," he added. "So you know, it's OK for it to sting a little bit. But what do you can do about it?"
Nobody should be surprised that Davis is back in Class AA to start the season. He only played 31 games for Altoona last year, and hit just .207 with four homers, 18 RBIs and a .703 OPS.
Davis was hit by what might have seemed like 100 pitches last season. The number was actually 20, which is absurd in itself, and it led to some hand injuries that forced him to miss time.
So, when I asked Davis if he thought there was a good possibility he'd be back in Class AA, he offered up this:
"No, I just think about what I can control every day. I'm not in control of an assignment or the lineup or anything like that. I'm just controlling giving it my best every day, so that's my only worry."
Curve manager Callix Crabbe talked about how Davis has made some adjustments at the plate to try and help combat getting hit so much.
"The hitting coach in me says be careful," Crabbe said. "He has an extreme hit tool, and so he has to be mindful.
"He has already made some adjustments. He's not, at least for me visually, he doesn't seem to be nearly as up on the plate as he was before, and so he seems to have backed off a little bit.
"I think a second component would be understanding that, when you have power the way that he does, people are going to try to attack you in. That's just the way that it is. You don't want to allow them to get any kind of space to move their arms underneath their chin so they can pull the ball in the air. And obviously Henry's power is center field to left center field. So, he just needs to be mindful of that.
"He's already made an adjustment, but just protect himself as much as he possibly can. Guys are going to pitch him in, though. That's the way it is."
One other fascinating thing Davis talked about Monday was in regard to the younger version of himself as a baseball player. It didn't sound much at all like something you'd expect from a No. 1 overall pick.
"I was pretty terrible when I was younger at baseball, honestly," he said. "And I think that's been the difference -- just continuing to see a version of myself that I'm capable of being and chasing that with everything I have so I can help win."
OK, so what exactly did Davis mean by calling himself "pretty terrible?"
"I was pretty solid for my town growing up, and then when I started playing on the travel teams where you see kids that are like, first time outside your area that are pretty good," he said. "I wouldn't play most of the time. And if I did play, it would be one of the games where they hit everybody and I'd be like hitting 13th or 14th. Little League ends when you're 12, and then like middle school time. I grew late. So yeah, like sixth, seventh, eighth grade. And then even in high school, I think I hit like .220 as a freshman in high school or something."
What makes those comments interesting is that most kids quit baseball if they're struggling like that at that age.
What kept young Henry playing the game?
'I've just always had a vision of who I could be, even when I was a kid to middle school, high school, college," he said. "I've always had like a perception of myself of who I could be. I've known what I'm capable of doing, so just always chasing that and find a way. And if I'm not doing it, work harder."
