The Pittsburgh Pirates’ starting lineup included Endy Rodriguez on Opening Day and Rafael Flores in the season finale, but the 25-year-olds will start spring training wondering where they fit into the roster.
Although both are catchers who can play first base, the majority of their major league starts came at the latter position last season.
The Pirates now have depth at first base between the return of a healthy Spencer Horwitz and the signing of All-Star slugger Ryan O’Hearn. With Henry Davis and Joey Bart figuring to fight for the starting catcher job, it leaves Rodriguez and Flores to prove that they belong.
That’s not all the duo shares in common.
Where Rodriguez arrived as part of the package in a three-team trade involving Joe Musgrove that brought David Bednar to his hometown team in 2021, Flores was the key return in the deal that sent the two-time All-Star closer to the New York Yankees last July.
And both used their bat to make a rapid rise through the Pirates’ system. Rodriguez was their minor league player of the year in 2022, then made his major league debut the following summer. But Rodriguez has batted .210 with three homers, 15 RBIs and a .587 OPS in 75 career games, with 61 coming at catcher.
Flores had six home runs, 28 RBIs and an .822 OPS in 36 games at Triple-A Indianapolis before getting his call-up last Sept. 17. He went 3 for 15 (.200), with two doubles, two walks and seven strikeouts in seven games, with his lone start at catcher coming at Cincinnati on Sept. 23.
“What I took the most is that the big leagues and the minor leagues aren’t very different,” Flores said last month at PiratesFest. “It’s the same baseball. It’s just at a higher level, but if you feel like you belong, you’ll be there for a long time. It’s just about how hard you work. And that’s the only thing I really know how to do, work hard, so I know if I stay consistent, stay healthy, I’ll be up there forever.”
Rodriguez has struggled to do both. He has a .210/.276/.311 slash line in 75 career games, and spent much of the past two seasons sidelined by injuries. He underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the majority of the 2024 season, then dealt with a laceration on his right index finger last April before being shut down in June with inflammation in his surgically repaired right elbow.
“After two years in this process, it’s tough,” Rodriguez said at PiratesFest. “I think it’s just bad luck.”
Rodriguez’s misfortune has opened opportunities behind the plate for Bart and Davis, a pair of catchers with first-round pedigree. Bart, the No. 2 overall pick in 2018, took advantage of Rodriguez’s absence.
After being acquired from the San Francisco Giants, Bart batted .265 with 11 doubles, 13 home runs, 45 RBIs and a .799 OPS in 80 games in 2024 to earn the starting catcher job. But Bart took a step backward last season, when his batting average slipped to .249, his OPS to .696 and he hit four homers and 30 RBIs in 93 games.
Still, the Pirates avoided arbitration with the 29-year-old Bart by agreeing to a $2.53 million deal this season. When Bart’s bat didn’t make up for his poor receiving, Davis relied on his defense to share starting duties.
While Davis has yet to show any consistency at the plate – or the power bat prompted the Pirates to make him the No.1 overall pick in 2021 – his arm strength, quick release and game calling earned the trust of National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes.
Davis, however, still has to prove he can hit. He batted .167 with seven doubles, seven homers and 22 RBIs in 87 games last season, and has a .181/.262/.294 slash line over 186 career games.
If Bart and Davis are going to get the lion’s share of games behind the plate, Flores and Rodriguez might have to find another way onto the field. Rodriguez’s versatility could help his cause, given that he’s shown the ability to play second base and the outfield in the minors. He still considers himself a catcher first, but must prove his arm can hold up.
“The arm has been solid,” Rodriguez said. “It’s about the same, I would say. It’s been pretty consistent. So we can’t worry about if I’m going to be a catcher now.”
Flores might be ticketed to start the season at Indianapolis but the 6-foot-4, 232-pounder’s bat could convince the Pirates to give him a shot sooner or later. Signed as an undrafted free agent out of Rio Hondo College in Whittier, Calif., Flores embraces the underdog role to the point that he has more than just a chip on his shoulder.
“Competing is what drives me,” Flores said. “I have this saying – it’s going to be on my catcher’s gear this year – (that) ‘I have a lot of shoulder on my chip.’ So, it’s just reversed. But I’ve had that forever. I’m a JUCO guy. I love to compete. I love to compete against other people. So if I can keep that mentality, I’m going to be successful.”