DUNEDIN, Fla. – Rookie Davis says he doesn’t get butterflies before starts.
The rookie right-hander was quite calm Friday when he made his Pirates’ spring debut by pitching two scoreless innings. A Pirates split-squad wound up tying a Blue Jays split-squad 1-1 in an exhibition game called after nine innings at Dunedin Stadium.
The 25-year-old was signed to a minor-league contract Feb. 18, a week after spring training opened. However, Davis made up for lost time against the Blue Jays, not allowing a hit while striking out three and walking one.
“I wasn’t nervous, I was excited,” Davis said. “I’ve been able to differentiate those two things over the course of my career.”
Davis is competing for the fifth starter’s job with Steven Brault, Nick Kingham and Jordan Lyles.
It was a bit of a milestone day for Davis as he spent all last season in the Reds’ minor-league system after recovering from hip surgery. He made six starts for Cincinnati in 2017.
“I was excited to get out there today,” he said. “I love to compete; I wasn’t able to do it last year because of the injury, so today was special for me. This is the first time I’ve pitched healthy in three years. I’ve battled through a lot.
“It’s a very surreal feeling. When I’d warm up in previous years, I’d feel something; it was just a matter of what I’d feel. Today, I caught myself in the outfield warming up and just taking everything in.”
Rookie Eduardo Vera gave up a solo home run in the eighth inning to Logan Warmoth, enabling the Blue Jays to tie the score at 1-all.
Jesus Liranzo pitched 1 2/3 shutout innings and Michael Feliz and Blake Weiman worked one scoreless inning apiece.
• Travis Swaggerty, the Pirates’ first-round draft pick last year, played in his first exhibition game and the outfielder went 0-for-1 with a walk and a strikeout.
The Pirates selected Swaggerty with the 10th overall selection from the University of South Alabama. He hit a combined .239/.322/.383 with five home runs and nine stolen bases in 52 games with low-A Charleston and short-season Morgantown.
The Pirates were held to four hits. Their run came in the sixth inning when Patrick Kivlehan doubled and eventually scored on an error.
• In the other split-squad game at Clearwater, the Pirates lost 7-3 to the Phillies as Kingham got roughed up for five runs and six hits – including two home runs – in three innings. Kingham walked one and struck out two. He was tagged for back-to-back homers by Adam Haseley and J.T. Realmuto during a four-run second inning.
Tyler Lyons allowed one run in one inning and J.T. Brubaker gave up one run in two innings. Dario Agrazal pitched two scoreless innings. Jacob Stallings hit a two-run home run and minor-leaguer Jerrick Suiter added a solo shot.
• Starling Marte and Adam Frazier remain the only regulars who have yet to appear in a Grapefruit League game, which is a bit unusual this far into spring training. However, Clint Hurdle says there is a method to the madness.
“We're trying some different things as far as when we plug guys in and the amount of work they do and the volume of work that they do to see how they respond to it,” Hurdle said.
By keeping the regulars in simulated games, it also gives the Pirates more opportunity to evaluate other players.
“That's one of the things we took into consideration when we looked at the makeup of the roster in spring training,” Hurdle said. “The number of young players that we have here that we actually wanted to put eyes on; the number of guys we targeted in the offseason and brought in from the outside that we told there would be opportunities.”
• The Pirates host the Yankees at 1:05 p.m. Saturday in Bradenton, Fla. Jordan Lyles is scheduled to start against Luis Cessa. Also expected to pitch for the Pirates are Felipe Vazquez, Keone Kela, Francisco Liriano, Kyle Crick, Richard Rodriguez and Agrazal. It will be the first Grapefruit League appearances for Vazquez, Kela and Rodriguez. Luis Cessa will start for the Yankees.
