Davis uses simple advice to guide Pirates win

Henry Davis finds momentum after a veteran coach’s straightforward guidance, culminating in a two-hit game and a homer.

After simple advice Pirates catcher Henry Davis hopes homer signals turnaround at plate

Henry Davis has been trying to shake a season-long hitting funk, and a veteran tip gave him a clear path. Gene Lamont, a 78-year-old special advisor to Pirates manager Don Kelly, told him to stop overthinking and focus on pitches down the middle. Davis listened, and when Brent Suter left a fastball grooved down the middle, the Pirates catcher launched a 373-foot homer in the seventh inning to boost a 7-0 win at PNC Park. He added a single earlier in the game on a high-velocity outside corner sinker, capping a two-hit night.

Davis’s breakout moment sits at the crossroads of old-school coaching and modern data. The simple instruction to swing at middle pitches contrasts with the era of deep stat review, but it reflects a timeless idea: trust your approach and let results follow. The two-hit game also marks a tangible step after a long stretch of hard contact with little payoff, underscored by a gap between Davis’s actual numbers and his expected metrics. This is as much a mental test as a mechanical one, and it comes at a time when Pittsburgh’s offense needs a spark. If he can sustain this feel, Davis could become a steady contributor for a Pirates lineup built on potential and growth; if not, the same patterns could snap back quickly. The team will watch whether Davis keeps the head straight when outcomes swing, and whether the staff can convert a moment into consistency.

Highlights

Momentum in a season is fragile; the real test is whether this moment becomes a pattern.