9-2-4-2: How a trio of Pirates rookies turned a game-saving double play to stun the Phillies

Once Henry Davis threw the ball, panic set in for the rookie right fielder. His laser beam of a throw to home plate stopped Bryce Harper in his tracks and set into motion a game-saving double play.

And all Davis could do was watch it unfold.

“I just wanted somebody to be out,” Davis said. “This place can be tricky sometimes.”

Three Pirates rookies combined to fool the Philadelphia Phillies by turning an incredible 9-2-4-2 double play in the top of the 10th inning that set the stage for Josh Palacios to hit a two-run, walk-off home run for a 6-4 win Sunday at PNC Park.

Don't try to tag up on Henry Davis!

The @Pirates rookie unleashes a 95.9 mph laser to cut the runner off at the plate and start a double play: pic.twitter.com/EyBfimAsd5

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 30, 2023

The Phillies had runners on first and third in the top of the 10th inning Sunday when Trea Turner hit a fly ball to right that had the looks of a sacrifice fly to score Harper from third for the go-ahead run. Instead, Davis caught it and unleashed a 95.9-mph throw that took one bounce before it reached rookie catcher Endy Rodriguez on the third-base line.

“He’s got a cannon of an arm, obviously,” Pirates rookie second baseman Nick Gonzales said. “Everyone’s kind of on the edge of their seat when a ball’s hit to Henry and he’s about to make a throw because he’s got a great arm, an accurate arm.”

Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Davis’ athleticism and arm strength were big reasons the Pirates moved the No. 1 pick of the 2021 MLB Draft from catcher to the corner outfield spot.

“I think as we’ve seen — not just on that throw but on other throws — that arm really plays out there,” Shelton said. “And when you have an arm like that, it’s a weapon. We knew that if we deployed him out there then that would be something that would really be beneficial for us.”

When Rodriguez caught Davis’ throw, he instinctively spun to make a tag. The ball traveled so fast that Harper didn’t dare try to score and was headed back to third. Alec Bohm, however, was stuck between second and third base, so Rodriguez heard shouts from his teammates.

“At that moment, I just try to find Harper and I hear ‘two,’ so I throw to second base,” Rodriguez said. “So I throw, got Harper back. That was good.”

Gonzales, meantime, was watching the play unfold from second base.

“It was really crazy because, obviously, the throw’s going for a sac fly-type situation and then with the great arm of Henry, I knew it was going to be close,” Gonzales said. “So, I kind of hung out around second and then just let the play develop.”

When Rodriguez threw to second base, Gonzales was expecting to tag Bohm. Instead, Harper broke for home. Gonzales immediately sent it back to Rodriguez, who tagged a sliding Harper out at the plate.

“It all started with Henry making a great throw to Endy and then Endy making a great throw to me. I’m not in a position to make a good throw if they don’t hit me right in the chest,” Gonzales said. “So, it’s a good play all around, people being where they need to be.”

All it required was quick thinking and three pinpoint throws by a trio of rookies with a combined 74 major-league games against a former NL MVP and a team that was in the World Series last fall.

“That’s the game, right? You just play catch, as simple as you can,” Davis said. “It goes a little deeper than that, but when we can control the baseball like that, it definitely helps.”

The Pirates rookies see it as a play that’s a sign of things to come.

“We’ve got it. Everybody knows we have the talent, and now we pull it off,” Rodriguez said. “We’re just working (on) the little things to enjoy the big thing in the future.”