Pittsburgh Pirates: Top Pick Henry Davis Injured

The Pittsburgh Pirates top draft pick has been off to a hot start. Unfortunately, the slugging catcher has suffered an injury with an unknown time frame.

When Ben Cherington and the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Henry Davis with the first pick, they were able to save money and spread out the pool over their next four selections. The front office, however, made it clear that Davis was the best player on their. This wasn’t a Tony Sanchez situation, rather they thought they could get the premier college player and save money to get high upside talent. Davis was ranked among the top three players in the draft by every public prospect outlet.

Davis got off to a great start since being drafted. Primarily known for his bat, as his defense leads to questions, his results backed it up those year in 31 plate appearances. In those 31 plate appearances he hit .308/.387/.808 with three home runs and 7 RBIs. Davis has even swiped a base.

Unfortunately, he has been placed on the Injured List with an oblique injury which could end his season given the minor league schedule ends mid September and obliques can linger. Tom Tomczyk, via Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette said:

“They could take up to 28 days. Right now, that’s why we’re learning more about the MRI. That will help us get a true, definitive prognosis”

Davis swinging the bat as well as he did and getting hurt is unfortunate. While an oblique will take time, he should be healthy by time instructional league starts. It was a good sign at least that Davis was hitting the ball hard. Getting him healthy and ready for the start of next season is a top priority and the team should be willing to be aggressive in promoting him to Double-A for the 2022 season.