BRADENTON, Fla. -- Rookie Davis spent his offseason training at the K-Zone Academy in Raleigh, N.C. His workout routine was unconventional, he said, and he recommended checking out his social media accounts for proof. You might see him carrying a weighted bag over his right shoulder while vaulting a wood beam, walking barefoot on a balance beam with a kettlebell in his raised left hand, or wearing a Jason Voorhees mask while doing deadlifts on Halloween.

It was all for a reason.

“The workouts that I did directly impacted what I can do throwing a baseball. That’s what I’m paid to do,” Davis said before working out with the Pirates on Thursday. “I’m not paid to go take my shirt off on a beach and take pictures. I’m paid to throw a baseball as efficiently as possible, so that’s what my workouts were geared toward.”

Davis worked out with Dan Kopitzke, owner of the K-Zone Academy, to get healthy after sitting out most of last season due to injuries. The 25-year-old right-hander agreed to terms on a Minor League contract with the Pirates on Monday, and now he’s looking to prove himself by winning a spot on the Major League pitching staff.

“I’m going to show up and compete every day, push the envelope, do whatever I can to help this team,” he said. “I’m a competitor. I like challenges.”

Davis will compete for a starting job against Jordan Lyles, Steven Brault and Nick Kingham. He said there were a few teams interested in signing him this offseason, but he felt like he found a fit in Pittsburgh after talking to manager Clint Hurdle, general manager Neal Huntington and director of baseball operations Will Lawton.

Davis likes Pittsburgh in part because he’s a fan of the Batman movie The Dark Knight Rises, which filmed some scenes in the city, to the point that he named his dog Bane. He said he loved pitching at PNC Park when he was with the Reds. He picked up his first -- and, thus far, only -- Major League win against the Pirates on May 3, 2017.

“I’ve played against this organization my whole career, so I know how they operate,” Davis said. “They breed winning here, and that’s what I wanted to be a part of.”

After pitching against the Cardinals on Sept. 20, 2017, Davis informed the Reds’ medical staff that he “kind of felt like an ice pick went in” around his right hip. He had previously been diagnosed with two groin strains, but an MRI revealed that Davis needed surgery to repair his labrum and remove a bone spur. He pitched only nine games in the Minors last season.

So Davis -- the former prospect who, appropriately enough, still has his rookie status intact -- went to work. He used the pitch-tracking technology at the K-Zone Academy to study his arsenal and integrate data into his preparation. In previous winters, Davis focused on losing body fat, ran on a treadmill and lifted weights like everyone else. With Kopitzke, he aimed to increase the mobility and strength of his hip and shoulders.

“The main goal was to be healthy. I’ve achieved that. I’ve gotten stronger,” Davis said. “My mobility, being able to put my body in certain situations and certain positions and still be stable in those positions, is the biggest thing.”

Around the horn

• Baserunning has been, and will continue to be, a focal point for the Pirates this spring. Last season, they ranked 28th in the Majors in FanGraphs’ Base Running metric. They ranked below the league average in steals (70) and stolen base percentage (65 percent) and finished fifth in the Majors with 62 outs on the bases.

Hurdle said the Pirates began talking about ways to improve over the winter and included situational baserunning drills in every workout since camp opened.

“I would say philosophically, it’s going to be attention to locking in on things we can attack,” first-base coach Kimera Bartee said. “Information, if I had to put it into one word. Getting the info and using that info. Everything falls in line after that. The decision-making gets better. The effort may be even better. If we can get them information that they know, believe and trust, we’re in a good position.”

• With his time in Pirates camp nearly over, country music star Garth Brooks had nothing but positive things to say about the experience. Brooks joined the club at Pirate City to help raise awareness for the 20th anniversary of his Teammates For Kids foundation, but he has felt like a fan talking to Pirates alumni such as Manny Sanguillen and Steve Blass.

“These are the guys I grew up with, so it’s cool. I love this team,” Brooks said. “This is heaven for me.”

• On Friday, the Bucs will hold their final workout before Grapefruit League games begin on Saturday. After Friday’s abbreviated workout, the club will move big league camp from Pirate City to LECOM Park.