Joey

Bart

Henry Davis is sticking around, so the Pirates will divvy up playing time behind the plate three ways. That figures to be bad news for Yasmani Grandal, particularly now that the Pirates are out of the race and better off taking a look at their younger players. Bart should get more of the catcher starts than anyone else, and he and Davis could DH on occasion.

The 24-year-old backstop battled through a concussion earlier in the summer, missing about a month before being sent back to Triple-A in late July after being activated off the IL. His absence opened the door for Joey Bart to claim the Pirates’ starting catcher job, but now Bart’s injury has opened up another chance for Davis. The 24-year-old has been on fire at Triple-A, hitting .302 with six home runs and six stolen bases since being optioned on July 7, so perhaps he can carry that over into his MLB at-bats.

We knew this was coming after Bart had to leave Sunday’s game early, but it’s a brutal blow for the 27-year-old who had been hitting .302 in 30 games since the All-Star break with six home runs, 19 RBI, and 20 runs. Hamstring injuries have a tendency to linger, so it’s unclear when Bart will return, but Henry Davis was called up to take his place on the active roster and split catching duties with Yasmani Grandal.

Henry Davis is expected to return from Triple-A Indianapolis to help share the load behind the plate with Yasmani Grandal. It’s not immediately clear just how long the Pirates expect Bart to be sidelined for, but with the way he has been hitting of late even 10 days would be a major blow to their offense.

Grandal launched a 393-foot big fly off Alexis Diaz with one out in the ninth inning to carry the Pirates to victory. The veteran is now slashing .208/.253/.371 on the season with seven home runs and 23 RBI. Joey Bart also left this game early with an apparent injury, which could open up more playing time for Grandal in the near future.

You could clearly see the discomfort from Bart after he attempted to beat out a grounder that scored a run. The Pirates will likely need to undergo testing on the 27-year-old, but for now he should be considered day-to-day with the injury.

Bart was the designated hitter Sunday and drove in a run, but he was unable to continue after hobbling while trying to beat out the fielder’s choice grounder. Connor Joe has taken over for Bart.

Bart helped spurn the Pirates’ rallies in the fifth and sixth innings to take the lead after trailing 5-0 early in this game. Overall, he has been a revelation of late. Pittsburgh had a black hole at catcher before claiming him from the Giants and he’s become one of their better hitters with 12 homers and an .858 OPS in 61 games as a Pirate. He’s consistently hitting fourth in their lineup, too.

Bart’s blast traveled an estimated 430 feet and left the bat at 110.5 MPH. That is a shot. He’s been a surprising source of power for both the Pirates and fantasy managers with an .883 OPS on the season and .940 OPS over his last 30 games. The barrel rate is elite, his bat speed is elite, and we could be looking at a powerful post-hype catcher moving forward.

The 27-year-old has been seeing fairly regular action in the designated hitter slot when he’s not behind the plate for the Pirates, but he’ll get a full night off against Logan Gilbert on Friday evening in Pittsburgh. Yasmani Grandal will do the catching for the Bucs and bat eighth while Andrew McCutchen serves as the team’s designated hitter.