ALTOONA, Pa. -- Callix Crabbe's favorite Henry Davis moment isn't a home run, a stolen base, a perfect throw or anything that you would see in a game. It was a private conversation, one that opened the manager's eyes to exactly what the former No. 1 overall pick already knew about the game.
Crabbe politely declined to go into too much detail about what the topic was, other than it was one of the more nuanced parts of the game. That tends to be where Davis thrives. The two were with high Class A Greensboro early in 2022 -- Crabbe managing for the first time in the Pirates' system and Davis preparing for his first full year of pro ball -- and what could have been a couple minute chat turned into an over hour long in-depth discussion. It was part in-depth dive, part motivational and, in Crabbe's eyes, completely substantive.
A year later, Crabbe is managing the Class AA Altoona Curve and Davis is his No. 3 hitter. The two talk baseball constantly. It's not uncommon for one to text the other about something they saw while watching a major-league game or to walk through some of the game's funkier rules. It's an example of how even though Davis is second in the Eastern League with a 1.005 OPS, it's perhaps his mind and motivation to get better that are his best tools as a player.
"He has a different brain, bro," Crabbe said. "He's an elite thinker. He grinds. He's different. He's definitely different."
As Crabbe spoke to DK Pittsburgh Sports in his office at People's Natural Gas Field this weekend, there was an unspoken understanding that the Curve's manager's days of writing Davis' name into the lineup card are probably close to numbered. A nagging wrist injury held Davis back from a promotion to Class AAA Indianapolis at the end of last season, and with the emergence of Endy Rodríguez a year ago, the Pirates opted to keep Davis in Altoona to start the minor-league campaign so both of their young catchers can get ample starting opportunities.
Recently, Davis has taken to playing right field multiple times per week, a hint that he's going to need to find different ways for him to get into the lineup once he and Rodríguez are inevitably on the same team, whether that is in Indianapolis or Pittsburgh. The Pirates value both as catchers, but they also know they are going to want both bats in the lineup. Ideally, they'll split the catching duties in some fashion and remain in the lineup most nights by other means.
That's all been covered before. During the Arizona Fall League last year, Davis said that playing in Pittsburgh is "all I think about." During the Curve's media day in April, Davis stated that, "I want to be in Pittsburgh right now." With the way he has hit, he's made a great case that he is ready to take on major-league pitching. According to the Pirates, though, he hasn't been promoted because they want him to continue to grow as a catcher, especially when it comes to the intangibles of the position.
"Like anything, you give Henry a target, and he attacks it with 100% ferocity," director of coaching and player development John Baker said recently. "We’re seeing that. That’s what we asked him to do essentially. Focus on pitcher-catcher relationship, continue to put himself in a good position to throw, but all in all, go throughout the day without being noticed behind the plate. I can say that every game I watched — and I watch every one of them — he’s incrementally getting better at doing that."
During a conversation with Davis this weekend, I wanted to focus on those areas. Our 15-minute conversation was less about him as a player and mainly consisted of questions about pitchers -- both their stuff and what can be the best way to catch and motivate them -- the intricacies of the position, calling a game and more.
In short, just a taste of what Crabbe and Davis talk about.
“He picks up on a lot of things," Curve pitching coach Cale Johnson said. "Details on a hitter’s swing or sees things with the pitchers... I feel like he's made some pretty rapid improvements. He really invests his time in knowing the opposing hitters, knowing his own pitchers, especially knowing his pitchers. He has taken that I have given him and he takes it to heart.”
Below is a near full transcript from that interview, with the few omissions being short questions asked for clarity. My questions are italicized, Davis' answers are in quotes. I start by asking about one of the more talented pitchers on the staff: Jared Jones.
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“Jared’s been great. Really owns his identity, knows what he does well and executes everyday.”
Where have you seen him grow in that year, because outside looking in, he looks like he’s improved.
“Yeah. He’s an incredible competitor, a fiery guy. I think learning to use that to his advantage has made him a completely different pitcher. The stuff was always there, but to see him put it together has been really great.”
As a catcher, what’s it like when you have that guy who has that stuff, has that fire?
“Jared’s probably one of the easier ones because I would just have to p— him off. I haven’t had to do it this year yet, but I teased him about it once.”
*Laughing* How would you p— him off?
“Jared’s easy. Jared’s like Michael Jordan. He’ll take everything personally, even when he knows nobody means it. I think sometimes he has imaginary wars with guys. He takes everything so personal and makes it really, really good.”
I’m sure that’s the type of guy you want to roll out into battle with.
“Yeah, it’s awesome.”
Another guy I’m probably going to talk to after, [Travis] MacGregor. It seems like he’s figured some stuff out this year. That fastball, how is it coming in?
“Yeah, he throws really hard and he’s got a really uncomfortable angle for guys, coming in with that drop, drive. He locates the ball really to his arm side and it really just pairs well with his whole arsenal. He’s a veteran guy who really knows what he wants to do and executes his way. It’s been fun catching him as well.”
It seems like he’s really learned how to use that fastball. Have you talked to him about it? What are those conversations when he comes in with a new ideology of how he wants to use that?
“He’s got a pretty good idea of what he’s doing. There’s certain guys that you game plan together, and there’s certain guys that just tell you what they’re going to do and what they need from you. He’s one of those guys that has an idea of what he’s really good at and how to get hitters out. Just kind of roll with his plan.”
ROB LYNN / ALTOONA CURVE
Henry Davis celebrates after scoring a run.
That was something that I talked to Endy [Rodríguez] about two, two and a half weeks ago. The first two weeks, it was whatever the pitchers wanted, and then two weeks in, it’s like, ‘alright, I think we should do this on top of it.’ You came up with some of these guys. How do you approach it?
“I think it’s always a blend. You’re going to war together. I think a piece of it – and Cale [Johnson] has been really great – is understanding what makes them really good. I can know them as a competitor, as a pitcher, and then there’s another element of what the game calls for and another element of what the data is saying. And Cale has been really great with helping me and the other guys learn why are you good and what should you be using and when. So I think it all comes together, the pieces to the puzzle. We want to use everything to our advantage. We’ll game plan together.
“At the end of the day, it’s their career and it’s their pitch and they need to have conviction with what’s coming out of their hand. I think what Endy had mentioned is how do you instill that conviction? Some guys really love looking at data, others don’t, but I remember Tahnaj [Thomas] and I had a conversation earlier where I felt like he wasn’t throwing his slider in-zone as much as he can. When I talked to him, I was like, ‘do you remember what your data was last year?’ He didn’t, and Tahnaj got over 40% swing and miss with his slider last year, which is great. ‘Like, dude, you can beat guys in the zone with this. It doesn’t always have to be a chase pitch.’ A lot of times you do see guys get strike three on the chase pitch, but when you have really good stuff like that, beat him in the zone. Go after him, challenge him.
“Little pieces like that, add to it. That’s something where the relationship is really important. Being able to deliver that information, whether it’s the pitcher presenting it or Cale presenting it or me or [catcher Dylan] Shockley or [infielder Claudio] Finol. Whoever. Whenever we come to that table and talk about the our game plan for that day. Is it that data? Is it from a previous outing on the mound? Is it from knowing the hitter or an adjustment they made in the last bullpen? Like, Jared was messing with his slider grip a little bit. Do you like that new one today, and when does he like it? Why does he like it? Is it because everybody is going for the… plane shape right now where it goes more across the zone, like the sweeper, or does Jared want to throw more of a gyro that really blends with his fastball and goes down below the zone and gets a lot of swing and miss on?
“You can go as in-depth as you want, and that’s very pitcher-oriented. Some guys want to know everything, and other guys just don’t. As a team, pitchers, catchers, the coaches just try to come up with the best plan for the guy that day.”
I want to go back to the data for a little bit. How did you know about Tahnaj’s slider whiff rate? Is it something that you remember with one of those meetings from Cale? Independent?
“I try to keep up with knowing why my guys are good, what makes them good. Knowing them as a competitor, knowing what they’re good at and why. What’s their best pitch? Why is it their best pitch? I think that with comes from doing this a little bit. It comes from exposing that to me. You don’t have that in college. You don’t have Pirates data at your disposal, but now I can just go on my iPad and type in [what I want]...
“I was talking to Anthony [Solometo]. Anthony’s stuff is incredible, but he didn’t throw it in-zone as much as he should for that stuff. He and I were talking and I was like, ‘dude, your stuff is unbelievable this year. If you can tick up your in-zone percentage, I promise you guys won’t touch it. You don’t need to get the chase that you have been, and you don’t need to do anything differently other than attack the zone a little bit more.’ We talked for a while, and his last two outings, he’s had one walk and had some great success.
“I think understanding that data side is something the Pirates have really helped me with. It’s not the only piece to the puzzle, but if it can help, why not use it?”
Back in Louisville, the pitching coach called a lot of pitches. Here, you’re doing a lot?
“Yeah, I’m doing it all here.”
How much of that was a learning curve here?
“I was very lucky to have a pitching coach [like Roger Williams] in college… I know there are some colleges where the catcher has no say and it’s just ‘put down what I say.’ But for three years in college, every game, every scrimmage, during summer ball, there’s constant dialogue between innings of why did he call that, did I feel like I would have called that? Why, in that lineup in that situation, what did he see that’s why he called it? So in those moments I was allowed to call it in college, there would be more feedback. It was a valuable experience as I got into pro ball. It didn’t feel like I was behind. I didn’t feel like I was starting brand new. There’s definitely been growth in that sense, where it’s like you learn more about it every day. Every day you become better at that. I can become better at that by just watching baseball, talking to the catcher who is catching. Just trying to absorb as much information as I can, try to be a sponge and find a way to help the team to win, any way I can. You have a lot of influence in that as a catcher.”
“Cale and I will meet before the game. He’s been great with me too. He’ll ask me what do I think, he’ll point out some notes. Cale is really, really, really smart. The way he understands data and can communicate it to me in a way that they can consume it and benefit us has been a difference maker.”
ROB LYNN / ALTOONA CURVE
Henry Davis makes a mound visit.
Getting to actual catching, I think I’ve asked you about the one-knee set up. Something that we’re seeing with Austin [Hedges] and [Jason] Delay in the majors. Was it something that felt natural to you? Something that you looked at and thought, ‘this is better for *blank*?’
“I was essentially explained that it was going to help me catch and it was going to help the pitchers and get us more strikes throughout the game, that blocking would improve and I could throw really well from there. In Louisville I was all traditional, and then with the Pirates, essentially, they said, ‘this can make you a better catcher and help us win more games,’ and I was like, ok. Just dove into it. It’s a process. You get better with it the more you do it.”
It looks natural. Does it feel that way?
“Yeah. I try to be an athlete. I try to rely on my athleticism, rely on the coaches, lean on other catchers. Any tips I can do to become better, just try to learn as fast as I can to make those adjustments.”
Whenever it comes to framing, how does that play a part of that? I think it was Quinn [Priester] who said you are going to stick it. Wherever you have the glove, you’re going to get it right there. Does the different set up help you improve in that area?’
“Definitely, yeah. That’s a goal with all of our catchers. There are things you can do every single day to get better at receiving, not just receiving, but all different parts of it. Really using the day, using the game, using your practice, reviewing it, talking to your coaches, talking to your teammates about anything you can do to get an advantage.”
How much was that brought up in college?
“I think as a freshman in college, it started becoming a conversation. I remember when I read about a good defensive catcher, it was a guy who knew how to manage a staff, can really block the ball well, would not have passed balls and just keep the ball in front of him. I think Statcast and metrics that were, I don’t know if they were only for front office or teams to have, but they were team-available. For a guy like me to see in college, the more it became, ‘ok, these guys are really good at this, but why? What are they doing, how can I learn from it? It was a little bit of a process, and I think my teammates and coaches were all on that same train in college of, ‘if this can help us win, let’s learn as much about it as we can.’ I was fortunate that the catcher before me at Louisville, who was Will Smith [of the Dodgers], came back and he had had insight into that world and gave us some advice on that stuff. I’ve had some really great resources and I’m very thankful for them.”
Who are some of these catchers you’re looking at when you say you’re looking at these guys? I’m assuming Will would be an example
“I watch every game I can, really. I get home and I’ll just throw the game on, whatever’s still live after we’re done. A lot of times, that’s west coast games. So I do get to see Will a decent bit. On TruMedia [note: TruMedia is a tool that integrates information and Statcast data to provide reports and help players do research], you can see who is the best at receiving at this location on which pitch type. It’s a ton of information if you know how to use it. It’s where the dialogue with my coaches and teammates, like, ‘what does this guy do really well, how can we learn from it?’ Like [Yankees catcher Jose] Trevino was incredible last year. That was a big focus. Some of our coaches went down for a week and just watched him, learn what he did.
“I think that’s a thing that all good baseball players do: Try to learn from players who are better than them. There’s no shame in saying someone may be better than you at something, but find a way to learn from it and add that piece to your game too.”
