Pirates rookie Henry Davis enjoys the moment after hitting 1st major league home run

Henry Davis is all business when it comes to baseball but the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie couldn’t suppress a smile after hitting the first home run of his major league career.

The 2021 MLB Draft No. 1 overall pick was without a hit in 10 at-bats since delivering a double in his first major league plate appearance when Miami Marlins lefty reliever Andrew Nardi hung a 1-1 slider over the heart of the plate in the eighth inning.

HENRY'S FIRST MAJOR LEAGUE HOMER! pic.twitter.com/OaTHgBoKcE

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) June 23, 2023

The 6-foot, 220-pound Davis barreled the ball and knew it had a chance to go out when it left at an exit velocity of 100.5 mph and a 30-degree launch angle, sailing 407 feet over the left field fence for a home run.

“I hope so,” Davis said on the AT&T SportsNet postgame show. “I think I got it pretty well.”

The leadoff solo shot gave the Pirates a 3-1 lead. When Ke’Bryan Hayes followed by hitting a two-out 0-2 slider for a homer to make it 4-1, the Pirates appeared poised to end their nine-game losing streak.

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“Henry had a good swing. He put us up,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “Then Ke’ comes up and puts us up even farther to extend the lead. Then we didn’t close it.”

That the Marlins rallied with a five-run eighth on the strength of Garrett Cooper’s three-run homer to clinch a 6-4 win Thursday night at loanDepot Park put a damper on Davis’ heroics.

“It was a good moment,” Davis said. “I just wish we’d won the game.”

Where Davis was down after the Pirates endured their 10th consecutive loss, he allowed himself to enjoy his first career homer. Davis appeared stoic as he headed to second base but flashed a smile as he rounded third. Davis celebrated after he crossed home plate, shouting “Let’s go!”

Congrats Henry Davis! - DP pic.twitter.com/MNbuNhxKta

— AT&T SportsNet™ PIT (@ATTSportsNetPIT) June 23, 2023

Then Davis was mobbed in the visiting dugout, as Mitch Keller handed him the home run sword and Rodolfo Castro draped the Pirates’ home run jacket over his shoulders while Davis shared high-fives and hugs in the celebration.

“It was a great moment with my teammates,” Davis said. “We were winning, so it was good. Then things unfolded how they did.”

Congratulations Henry Davis on first MLB hit. pic.twitter.com/JlxvuaFlaI

— Scott (@bonnett_scott) June 22, 2023

Davis started in right field against the Marlins, his second start there since being called up Monday from Triple-A Indianapolis for his debut. Davis said he wasn’t bothered by playing under a roof for the first time, especially after first base/outfield coach Tarrik Brock worked with him before the game on how to handle fly balls with a ceiling.

“It was fine,” Davis said. “Those are the boxes you check as you prepare for the game. When you’re out there, I just do my best.”

Davis went 1 for 2, getting hit by a pitch by Marlins starter Braxton Garrett in his first at-bat in the third inning and going down swinging at a slider in the fifth. After Garrett recorded a career-best 13 strikeouts in seven innings, the Marlins turned to Nardi in the eighth and Davis was the first batter he faced.

Then Davis checked off another box with his first homer. He’d gone deep 24 times in 118 games in the minor leagues, including 10 homers in 41 games with Double-A Altoona and one in 10 games with Triple-A Indianapolis this season. Davis was able to keep his first major league home run ball as a memento, trading an autographed bat and ball and smiling for a photo with a fan as an exchange.

Pirates Henry Davis received his first HR Baseball back.The trade : signed bat, signed baseball and obviously, this photo. pic.twitter.com/xXzZaORQQz

— Craig Mish (@CraigMish) June 23, 2023

Shelton took Davis out as part of a defensive substitution for shortstop Tucupita Marcano in the bottom of the eighth, as Connor Joe shifted from left field to right, Jack Suwinski from center to left, Ji Hwan Bae from second base to center and Rodolfo Castro from shortstop to second base. That move ended up backfiring when the bullpen gave up five runs, so Shelton had Jason Delay pinch-hit for Marcano with Castro on first base in the top of the ninth, only for Delay to ground out to end the game.

Now, Davis is focused on checking off one more box by helping the Pirates find a way to win. Davis is still looking for his first victory as a major leaguer and promised to “keep that edge.”

“We’re a good team, better than we’ve played recently,” Davis said. “Today doesn’t dictate tomorrow. So, (Friday), we have to come out with that energy and with that edge and compete our tails off.”