The Oakland A’s decision to bring back Khris Davis seemed to be much ado about nothing. It was a favor to a player that had meant a great deal to the franchise, a chance for him to show that he had something left. However, absolutely nothing was expected, as he was likely to head to Triple-A and remain there for the rest of the season.
No one told Davis of this plan. Instead of fading into obscurity, he has begun to look like the player he was in his heyday with the A’s, belting home runs and being a power threat at Triple-A. It has gotten to the point where he is a viable option to get the call back to the majors as the A’s need a right handed power hitter in the lineup.
Khris Davis keeps doing his thing in Triple-A
That continued on Saturday night. Davis crushed a Nick Torpeano offering in the top of the second, sending it deep to left for his ninth homer since heading to Las Vegas. That power is why Davis could get a look in Oakland sooner rather than later.
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But that homer was not the end of Davis’ tale on Saturday. He also struck out twice, both times on breaking balls away. Davis did have swing and miss issues at the major league level at times, striking out in 26.7% of his career plate appearances. However, those issues were mitigated by a solid 8.7% walk rate, which often went over 10% in his prime.
Davis had been showing solid plate discipline at Triple-A, drawing four walks in his 53 plate appearances heading into Saturday. He had also been making a great deal of contact, with eight strikeouts in that time. But pitchers adjust, especially in Triple-A and in the majors. That may be starting to happen.
Nonetheless, Davis may be a gamble that the A’s would need to take. They would have to open a spot on the 40 man roster, but that may be easy enough to do. Davis feels that his swing is fixed, but he still needs to prove himself again at the major league level. At this point, the potential reward outweighs the risks, even if they appeared during the game on Saturday.
Khris Davis homered, but also showed why there is reason for caution. Despite that, the Oakland A’s should get ready to make a call.