First overall draft pick Henry Davis is making the jump to professional games, bypassing Class Low-A Bradenton and going straight to High-A Greensboro.
Davis went 3-for-7 in his two games in the Pirates’ Florida Complex. Now, he will be part of Greensboro’s final month of a season to get his feet wet in professional games.
The decision to send him to the Bradenton, Fla. facility was a bit of a conservative placement to start, but he will go on and join the team’s previous three first-round picks -- second baseman Nick Gonzales and right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski in 2020 and right-hander Quinn Priester in 2019 -- in Greensboro, NC.
“I think we want – with every player but Henry included – to first get a sense of where they are,” Ben Cherington said on Davis’ introduction on July 18 on if Davis would play in professional games this year. “Let’s keep getting to know each other, get back into a baseball routine, everyday routine, introduce game activity and then see where it goes… We want guys to be not overwhelmed but challenged and there’s certainly playing time this summer and the rest of the season to see how it goes.”
The Bradenton Marauders already have a pair of catchers splitting time in Endy Rodriguez and Abrahan Gutierrez, who was acquired from the Phillies during the trade deadline. Greensboro there is a much more open position for consistent playing time, plus more of a challenge.
Davis, 21, was taken with the first overall pick in last month’s amateur draft. He signed for a $6.5 million bonus, an under-slot amount that allowed the Pirates to add more talent in later rounds. Baseball America ranked him as the No. 4 prospect in this year’s draft.
The Grasshoppers are currently in Winston-Salem, NC, playing a six-game series against the White Sox Class High-A affiliate.