Position: C
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 190 lbs
Bats/Throws: R/R
Born: 03/07/1995
College: University of Vanderbilt
How Acquired: Drafted 4th Rd., 118th Overall, 2017
Bonus: $100,000
40-man Roster: Yes
Rule 5 Eligible: N/A
Minor League Free Agency: N/A
Options Left: 1
Overview
The Pirates drafted Delay as a senior catcher out of Vanderbilt. Baseball America had him ranked 256th in the 2017 draft class and called him an effective pitch framer who does a great job of handling a pitching staff. Statcast data does show he’s well above average at framing and he’s effective at blocking pitches. In the majors, he hasn’t been as successful in controlling the running game. He had his best collegiate season at the plate in 2017 with a .309/.381/.444 slash line; his numbers during his first three seasons were much weaker. Delay had a similar profile to Jacob Stallings, as a senior catching prospect from a major college with strong defensive skills but a dubious bat. His selection probably had more to do with the fact that the Pirates took prep players with their first four picks and were likely to need some extra bonus pool money to sign them. They saved some by signing Delay for $100,000, which was $350,500 below the slot amount.
2017-20
Delay moved up quickly through the lower levels of the Pirates’ system, reaching AA in his second full season. In each of his first three years, he split time behind the plate with other catchers, so by the end of that time he’d played the equivalent of about one full season. At the plate he just held his own and didn’t hit for much power, except for a huge month of May at Altoona in 2019, when he posted an OPS of 1.077. That was followed by .377 in June. He didn’t play in 2020.
2021-22
For a year and a half, Delay didn’t seem destined to be around long. In 2021, he wasn’t assigned anywhere until mid-June. He got 94 ABs between Altoona and Indianapolis, then went out for the season with an injury in early August. In 2022, he opened as a fill-in catcher for Indianapolis. In late May, the team told him there was no more need for him and he could stay on as a bullpen catcher at Indy. He went over two weeks without playing at all. In mid-June, though, with a need for a doubleheader, the Pirates called Delay up. He was optioned back after that one game, but returned a couple weeks later when Tyler Heineman went on leave. In the end, Delay caught more games for them than anybody else on the year. He was overmatched at the plate (.536 OPS) and threw out only 20% of base stealers. He also had a very high total of nine errors, but that was an anomaly based on the rest of his career. He did have a habit of coming through in clutch situations, batting .300 with two outs and runners in scoring position. Overall, his defense was good enough that he was slightly above replacement value.
2023-24
The Pirates outrighted Delay after the 2022 season. In spring 2023, he won the backup job behind Austin Hedges over Heineman. The three batted .143, .135 and .136 in spring training, which is a good indicator of the level of competition. In the regular season, Delay first backed up Hedges and then Endy Rodriguez, and in the end did about the same amount of catching as the others. The metrics credit him with excellent receiving and framing skills. He had no passed balls. Throwing was a different matter, as he caught only 11% of base stealers. Like a number of the team’s hitters, Delay had a phenomenal first month, with a 1.045 OPS in April. He followed that with .481 and .384 in May and June, then rebounded to .733 in July and .759 in August, before slumping again in September.
Because of an injury to Yasmani Grandal, Delay opened the 2024 season with the Pirates but, after he’d played in one game he went out with knee inflammation and missed nearly two months. After he returned, he spent the season with Indianapolis other than one brief stint with the Pirates. Delay hit reasonably well in AAA, with a 287/357/360 line. He threw out only 15% of base stealers but played well defensively otherwise.
Delay has two options left.
Stats
Transactions
June 11, 2016: Drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 11th round, 335th overall pick.
June 13, 2017: Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 4th round, 118th overall pick; signed on June 20.
June 13, 2022: Contract purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
November 10, 2022: Outrighted to AAA by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
March 30, 2023: Called up by the Pittsburgh Pirates.