Do you know this man?
You should ... even if homer-hitting Khris Davis likes to stay under the radar
Khris Davis doesn’t hide the fact that he prefers life out of the limelight.
His calling is hitting baseballs hard and far. His calling isn’t fame, even though fame usually accompanies hitting baseballs hard and far.
“I tend to shy away from it,” Davis said. “I embrace it a certain way, but for the most part I don’t want to be bothered.”
The A’s left fielder is the most potent power hitter by the bay, the most dangerous long-ball threat in these parts since Barry Bonds suited up. Davis hit 42 home runs last year and has 10 this
season, tied for most in the American League. If people only knew. Davis, 29, has done his hitting in relative anonymity, considering the A’s don’t draw much national attention, ranked second to last in attendance last year and rank last this year. Anyway, Davis isn’t necessarily interested in the extra pub that power hitters tend to receive.
He’s not into creating his own brand, making a splash on social media or being a celebrity.
Catcher Stephen Vogt called Davis “one of the
best players who’s not talked about much,” and maybe that makes Davis and the A’s a perfect match.
“I love Oakland. A lot,” said Davis, who lives in the city yearround, rare for A’s players, and worked out over the winter at Dogtown Athletic, a gym in West Oakland. “It seems like a hard-working city versus San Francisco. It just feels blue collar. Artistic. Soulful. There’s a lot of history. A lot of tradition.”
A lot of admiration from his team and manager, too.
“I think this city, this ballpark really play well for him,” Bob Melvin said. “At times, he just wants to stay away from the whole exposure thing and come to the ballpark and do his job, and he’s very good at it.”
It always was that way for Davis, whose father, Rodney, provided insight into the game as a longtime baseball scout and coach at different levels, including as a San Francisco State assistant. His mother, Sonia, who was born in Mexico, emphasized hard work and still holds down two jobs.
Khris was born in Lakewood (Los Angeles County), moved to Arizona when he was around 8 and is the eldest of three siblings. His dad’s baseball travels often kept him away from home, and his mom was there to help Khris develop on and off the field.
“She always pushed me. That’s where she just led by example,” Davis said. “She wasn’t a very vocal person. She just got the job done. That’s how she expected me to do my house chores. It just kind of carried over. Being busy is good for my mind.”
Before playing college ball at Cal State Fullerton, getting drafted by the Brewers in the seventh round in 2009 and being traded to the A’s in February 2016, Davis helped his Deer Valley High School team in Glendale, Ariz., to a state championship.
“I just always played baseball,” Davis said. “It was my favorite game growing up. I was lucky enough to be all right.” All right? “I showed flashes,” he said. “It’s always been a hard game.”
His high school coach isn’t so modest when describing Davis’ ability at a young age.
“Just an incredible ballplayer, even more so an incredible teammate,” Larry Eubanks said. “With all the talent, it was never really about him. He was more concerned about others’ success and the team’s success, though a lot of that success obviously was because of Khris’ success.”
Davis called Eubanks the most influential coach in his career — “he cared about who we became off the field, who we were” — and the way Eubanks talks about his former star player, Davis hasn’t changed much.
“He never was a kid who wanted to be in the limelight and in front of others,” Eubanks said. “He was always a quiet, unassuming young man who frankly every coach dreams of having. I’m sure you see that to some degree now.”
In the state title game, which went extra innings, Davis singled, stole second and scored the winning run. The pitcher from the opposing school was Jaff Decker, now an A’s outfielder.
Decker, two years younger, played on a couple of Davis’ travel-ball teams during their Little League years and recalls his old buddy as a “stud ballplayer” but reserved, just like now.
“Same old Khris. Just laid back. That’s the way he always was,” Decker said. “He’s not going to jump around and let you know how good he is. He’s going to let you know when you look up at the scoreboard.”
Last year, Davis was the seventh player in A’s franchise history to hit at least 40 homers in a season. This year, he was the fourth in team history to hit seven homers in the team’s first 15 games.
With homers No. 8 and 9 on Friday and No. 10 on Saturday, he’s well ahead of his pace last year, when he hit just three April homers.
On the cover of the A’s media guide, Davis is pictured with the six other A’s in the 40-homer club. The most recent before Davis to reach 40 were Reggie Jackson, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco and Jason Giambi, who were known to have largerthan-life personalities.
All colossal names. All superstars.
Where does Davis fit in? Do 42 homers constitute superstardom?
Or at least put him on the road?
“That’s probably proven over time,” Melvin said. “What he did last year and what he’s currently doing, he’s probably on track. He doesn’t like hearing about that stuff. He just likes going about his business and doing his job.”
Vogt’s definition goes a step further.
“I would say he is a superstar,” Vogt said. “A guy with 42 homers. He had 100 home runs before arbitration. That’s unheard of. That’s a superstar baseball player. He might not be in the limelight or the public’s eye as a superstar, but he is a superstar.”
Eubanks, who played with Bruce Bochy in the Astros’ farm system, is careful with such a label.
“It’s not a role he’s necessarily comfortable in, and flying under the radar obviously has worked well with him,” Eubanks said. “The superstar thing is a dangerous thing to throw out, I think. Obviously, if he puts up the same kind of numbers, he’ll probably be back to arbitration, and he’ll be hard to deny.”
On Feb. 1, Davis became the first A’s player to win an arbitration case since Billy Beane became general manager in 1997, a three-person arbitration panel selecting Davis’ $5 million asking price over the $4.65 million proposed by the A’s.
Surprisingly, a deal wasn’t reached before a hearing, as is the case with most every other arbitration-eligible A’s player — especially because of the relatively tiny difference in figures. Either way, it was a significant raise from $524,000, and Davis could get another boost next year if he continues to produce.
Davis can be a free agent after the 2019 season, and the A’s have a history of unloading their best players before they make major money. Despite his comfort level in Oakland and the fact he seems a great fit, no one on this team is trade-proof.
It’s not as if Davis’ game doesn’t need improving. He doesn’t have a great arm, but coaches say he’s improving his overall defense after working hard in spring training, including on hitting the cutoff man. On offense, aside from the 42 homers and 102 RBIs last year, he hit a pedestrian .247 with a .307 on-base percentage and 166 strikeouts.
Davis initially agreed to play for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic, but changed his mind and dedicated himself to the A’s in spring training.
A month into the season, he has a better average and OBP and is walking more — 14 percent of plate appearances, up from 7 percent.
“Now he’s kind of laying off some pitches we saw him swing at last year,” Melvin said. “He’s a little more aware of when they’re trying to pitch around him, passing the baton to whoever’s behind him.”
Through it all, Davis remains every bit of a long-ball threat. Five of his 10 homers have been hit at the pitcher-friendly Coliseum — “I like coming to this ballpark. It’s a grungy stadium, but I don’t need the fancy art, high-tech stadium to perform” — and six have been hit to the opposite field, a Davis trademark.
For a guy who’s listed at 5foot-10 and 195 pounds, where does Davis — Khrush Davis, as the fans call him — get his power?
“I get it from hand speed, rhythm and the way my hands and lower half work together,” he said.
Melvin, who throws Davis batting practice every day, likened the opposite-field pop to that of Miguel Cabrera and said, “I still marvel at how far he can hit the ball to right-center field. His limbs are so strong.”
While Davis is fine out of the limelight, the A’s are starting to promote him. The team’s #RootedInOakland campaign, spearheaded by Dave Kaval, the new team president, includes the cleanup hitter.
“More Round Trips Than the Oakland Airport,” blasts a Davis billboard near the airport.
“Welcome to the Beast Bay,” roars another.
Davis also is on light-pole banners around downtown and Lake Merritt. A message on BART suggests Davis “Put the Chabot Telescope to Good Use 42 Times Last Year.”
By the way, A’s players say that off the field and behind the scenes, Davis can be a different person.
“He’s a lot more outspoken with us,” Vogt said. “He doesn’t like the spotlight. He doesn’t like all the attention on him. But he talks it up with his teammates. He’s a great teammate, a true professional.”
Reliever Ryan Madson added that Davis can be the funniest man in the room. “Hilarious,” Madson said.
It’s a part of Davis the public doesn’t see and might never see, which is fine. For fans, his game speaks volumes.
“I’m pretty private,” Davis said. “I prefer to be pretty private.”
Jaff Decker, A’s teammate, on Khris Davis
John Shea is The San Francisco Chronicle’s national baseball writer. Email: jshea@ sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JohnSheaHey
“He’s not going to jump around and let you know how good he is. He’s going to let you know when you look up at the scoreboard.”