Ex-Jay Davis ever in demand
It was the best of times, the worst of times, a tale of two veteran reserve outfielders headed in different directions on Monday at Rogers Centre.
The feel-good story was the return to Toronto, once again, of the speedy Rajai Davis, to a city where he was an important piece of the puzzle for three years, from 2011-13. The flip side was the Blue Jays surprisingly designating their own reserve outfielder, 35-year-old Nori Aoki, for assignment, meaning he will be either traded or released in the next few days and free to sign with another team.
Davis has truly led a charmed baseball life, but a large part of that is his personality and what he is able to do as a player — steal bases and remain happy and engaged while playing less than a fulltime role. It’s a formula for a long career.
The Connecticut native has had just three seasons out of 12 in which he accumulated greater than 450 major-league plate appearances — in 2010 with Oakland, 2012 with Toronto and 2016 with Cleveland. Yet over that 12-year time frame, since his 2006 debut, Davis has stolen 391bases, including 40-plus in five different seasons.
One of those 40-plus seasons was under manager John Farrell with the Jays in 2012. Davis also went over 40 steals last year with the Indians, and hammered what seemed like the biggest home run of Cleveland’s season in Game 7 of the World Series against Aroldis Chapman of the Cubs.
So this month, when injuries sent Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski scrambling to come up with a backup outfielder, Farrell remembered his time with the Jays and Davis’s skills. Acquired by the Sox on Aug. 23, not only did he go from the last place A’s to the first-place Red Sox, the 36-year-old is now playing within driving distance of his Connecticut home and his two young children.
“That’s just a blessing,” Davis said prior to the game.
“It’s something you dream about doing when you’re a kid, playing for the hometown team, playing close to home. We never really had a home team in Connecticut so I had a couple of teams I could root for. Just being close to home is a good feeling.”
Since Davis departed the Jays as a free agent following the 2013 season, the first year for John Gibbons in his second go-round as manager, the Jays have struggled to find speed at the top of the order. Clearly, speed is an asset this current Jays team is lacking. Davis remembers fondly his three years in Toronto.
“I didn’t realize the enthusiasm and loyalty of the fan base,” Davis said. “I do realize it now. Toronto fans have just been awesome receiving me every time I come back. It’s been mind-blowing how loyal they’ve been, how faithful. Those guys that they like, they like. I just happened to be one of those guys for a few years.”
Davis provides the perfect blueprint for a major-league role player. Simply bring a certain unique skill, be content with whatever role you are given and never price yourself out of the market. There’s always room for players like that.
“I guess there is something to be said about that,” Davis smiled. “I’m just trying to continue to at least give my son the chance to watch his dad play. He’s only two now, so I don’t know if (Jordan Michael) will be able to remember. My daughter (Jayda Marie) is four. She’s got a chance to watch daddy play a little bit and she’ll probably remember a little bit more than he will, but you never know.”
The reputation Davis brings with him wherever he goes is of a great teammate. He broke in with Jose Bautista and the Pirates and together they formed a dynamic Double-A combo at Altoona in 2005, before getting together with the Jays years later. Knowing Bautista helped ease his transition to the Jays.
“I think if you understand what you can do to help others it makes a difference,” Davis said. “I think it’s on an individual basis. It depends on what they want to achieve. For me, that’s one thing I want to do. I want to be a good teammate. I want to be able to help my teammates. I want to be able to see where I can fit winning in that equation. If that’s bringing joy every day, happiness just from playing major-league baseball, what I do for a living, that’s fun to me.”
Even as players from his draft year retire or are let go, Davis has no plans to pack it in and call it a career. “No chance,” the 36-year-old said about retirement. “I think I’m getting my ultimate speed now. I’m actually learning the game a lot better now than when I was younger and I feel like I’m a better player now. Speed is an asset, especially if you’re not swinging the bat like you’d like. Obviously those guys that lead the league in line drives have a better chance of getting on base, but when you can hit groundballs and still get on base, that’s a plus.”
Davis will be a free agent again in 2018. And he will have a job again.