Catcher defies the odds
Delay reaches the opening day team
CLEARWATER, Fla. — There are few more improbable stories inside the Pirates clubhouse than the amalgamation of events that kept Jason Delay playing professional baseball in June 2022.
Squeezed out of playing time and relegated to bullpen catcher duty with Triple-A Indianapolis, Delay sketched out a path to retire and fall back on his economics degree from Vanderbilt.
But after major league bullpen catcher Jordan Comadena and reliever Duane Underwood Jr. contracted COVID-19, Delay got his shot, starting behind the plate during an uncomfortably hot doubleheader in St. Louis.
As impressive as that might’ve been — the 29-yearold returning later that season before logging 70 games in 2023 — Delay may be on his way to authoring an impressive sequel.
Potentially the odd man out when the Pirates signed Yasmani Grandal a couple days before pitchers and catchers reported, it was looking more and more like Delay will be on the opening day roster.
And Delay will make the roster, as the Pirates announced their roster on Monday.
Henry Davis has been one of the feel-good stories of spring — defending well and producing four homers, 11 RBIs and a 1.070 OPS in 12 Grapefruit League games entering March 18 — but Delay has proven his value, too.
By being his same, steady self.
“There’s not a lot of maintenance,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said of Delay. “You know what you get. You’re gonna get a guy who’s a really good receiver and someone who gives you a consistent at-bat.”
Delay had some tough luck early, as he opened the spring hitless in his first 10, although he hit several of those balls right on the screws. He has since gone 4 for 10 over his past four.
Nobody expects Delay, who hit .319 with an .818 OPS during the first two months last season, to hit .400 or anywhere close. But he’s certainly proven himself capable as a defense-first backup.
Pitchers love throwing to Delay for his ability to frame and call a game, traits he actually learned last season from Austin Hedges.
“Confidence helped me a lot,” Delay said. “Then the more you play, you can get into a little bit of a rhythm. That goes hand-in-hand with confidence.”
Who knows how long this lasts with Delay? Grandal, who received a $2.75 million contract (plus incentives), has been able to hit and catch, which he’s been doing over at Pirate City. Director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said the team has been working on those things, so once Grandal completes a running progression, he can return to major league games.
At the same time, it was announced that Grandal would start the season on the 10-day injured list.
It’s certainly respectable, although not surprising for anyone who knows Delay.
Delay has been sneaky good when it comes to defense. His fielding run value (FRV), per Baseball Savant, in 2023 was bettered by just 20 catchers across MLB. When it comes to pitch-framing, only seven had more than Delay’s 8.4 framing runs.
Delay’s blocking and throwing weren’t on the same level, but we’re also talking about a backup catcher with 127 games of MLB experience — it’s OK.
“I hate for any opportunity to come at someone else’s expense,” Delay said. “But that’s kind of where we are. I feel like I’m ready to take that next step.”
But we do know the Pirates will prioritize the veteran if/when he’s healthy because they’re paying him, while Davis clearly has a sizable role in the organization’s future. They’d be silly not to feature Delay, should he earn the time.
All of it could paint the picture of someone operating on borrowed time, although counting out Delay at this point probably isn’t smart.