Pirates should dangle Henry Davis as trade chip before it's too late

As the July 30 trade deadline approaches, it's no secret that the Pittsburgh Pirates are in desperate need of some offense. Given the lack of pure sellers on this year's market, available bats are going to be hard to come by, but the Pirates have the type of organizational depth that can give them a competitive advantage – if they use it wisely.

When it comes to Pittsburgh's tradable assets, much of the focus has been on pitching depth, and rightfully so. The Pirates have a robust farm system packed with young arms; they have four prospects in MLB Pipeline's top 100, and three of them are pitchers.

While dealing from their deep collection of pitching prospects – or even their major league bullpen – to improve their lineup is still a viable option for the Pirates, they have another valuable trade chip that they shouldn't be afraid to weaponize at the deadline: 2021 No. 1 overall pick Henry Davis.

Pirates should dangle Henry Davis as trade chip before it's too late

Davis was drafted as a catcher, but the arrivals of Joey Bart and Yasmani Grandal have made him redundant on Pittsburgh's roster. He appeared in two games as a catcher during his rookie season, but the Pirates tried moving him to the outfield to no avail. Davis has an abysmal .197 batting average in 310 major league plate appearances over the past two seasons, resulting in his demotion to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Davis has responded nicely and is currently slashing an impressive .300/.413/.600 through 120 plate appearances with Indianapolis. In other words, his trade value has never been higher. The Pirates find themselves in the unfamiliar situation of being playoff contenders, and cutting ties with Davis at this juncture seems like a small price to pay considering what they could get in return.

With less than a week to go until the trade deadline, the Pirates have some decisions to make. They have an opportunity to win right now if they upgrade their major league roster, and they shouldn't hesitate to move Davis if the right opportunity presents itself.

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