Bart ready to reap rewards of offseason defensive work

BRADENTON, Fla. ¨C Leading up to the 2024 season, Joey Bart did something new to prepare: he started working with a hitting coach. In his eyes, he ¡°just went up there and swung¡± early in his career. Leading up to that pivotal year of his career, Bart worked on some mechanical changes and wound up being one of the Pirates¡¯ best hitters, clubbing 13 home runs with a .799 OPS over 80 games.

Leading up to this season, Bart¡¯s situation is a lot different. Rather than being in no-man¡¯s land with the Giants, he¡¯s going to be one of Pittsburgh's catchers out of the gate, and most likely the starter. He now has some job security, but the desire to get better is as strong as ever.

¡°I think it gives you a little bit more of a baseline of where you are and what you can improve on,¡± Bart said about building on last season. ¡°I think that¡¯s the way to look at it. It¡¯s like, ¡®OK, some of these things went well, some of these things didn¡¯t go well. How can I improve on them?' That¡¯s what I did all offseason. I tried to dive in and figure it out.¡±

Last winter, much of that focus was on the offense. This winter, it was the defense.

Bart got high grades from his pitchers last season, and he was able to learn his new staff on the fly after he was acquired on April 2. But metrically speaking, he graded as a below-average defensive catcher in 2024, being worth -4 Defensive Runs Saved. FanGraphs graded his pitch framing at -3.5 runs, a departure from what the Pirates normally have behind the plate.

From 2020-23, Pittsburgh catchers were worth 41.1 framing runs, the third most in the Majors behind the Brewers and Yankees. They still graded positively last season as a team, but their 2.4 framing runs was closer to the middle of the pack than they¡¯re accustomed to. So this winter, Bart dove into the defensive side of the game, sending videos of him in bullpen sessions to catching coach Jordan Comadena and third-base coach Mike Rabelo (a former Major League catcher) to get feedback on his changes. The two coaches also joined Bart in Atlanta for a few days this offseason to do some instruction in person.

The biggest change is Bart transitioning to receiving from one knee more often. It¡¯s something the Giants didn¡¯t do much of but which the Pirates value. Ideally, being on one knee means a leg can be kicked out, which puts the catcher in a spot where his torso can sink lower and stay level. That lets him see the ball clearly and make his move.

Comadena and Rabelo worked extensively with Henry Davis the year before on the same ideas, and he grew exponentially behind the plate. Jacob Stallings and Jason Delay are their other success stories in recent years, showing that Pittsburgh can help catchers improve as receivers.

Bart is looking to follow their lead. Last season, there were times he was ¡°jumping all around¡± while receiving. The goal this year is to change that.

¡°The game is gonna tell us what¡¯s going on, how I¡¯m feeling [and] how things are,¡± Bart said. ¡°It¡¯s definitely an adjustment. It¡¯s not super comfortable, but that¡¯s where I¡¯m at.¡±

¡°Right now, he's probably a little uncomfortable doing different things, but it's definitely showing signs that it's playing better,¡± manager Derek Shelton said.

Not being comfortable is far from a dealbreaker, though.

¡°I¡¯m fine with it being uncomfortable,¡± Bart said. ¡°I think it should be uncomfortable if I¡¯m really trying to improve and trying to push the limits, find different ways to get better.¡±

Spring Training is a time where players have flexibility to experiment and try those new things that might not come completely naturally. It¡¯s a time of self-reflection and growth. That¡¯s what Bart is searching for right now. He tries to avoid what the outside sources are saying, whether it¡¯s positive or negative. On Tuesday, his spring debut, Bart threw out Eli White trying to steal in the first inning of a 2-1 loss to the Braves. That¡¯s far more of an indicator of where he is defensively.

¡°I¡¯m a day-at-a-time kind of guy, man,¡± Bart said. ¡°I have a process, and I¡¯m trying to stay focused on that process, and ultimately, that¡¯s going to make me a better player.¡±