Quantcast

JD Davis excited for homecoming opportunity with Giants after Mets trade

Note: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate links, Schneps Media may earn a commission.
New York JD Davis New York Mets
JD Davis
AP Photo/Alex Gallardo

After years of seeing his name attached to trade rumors, one of them finally came to fruition for JD Davis, who traded in a package by the New York Mets to the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday afternoon — just hours before the trade deadline — for Darin Ruf.

So ends Davis see-saw time with the Mets that saw him start as a promising bat to a weapon if given the proper chance, to a disappointing showing in 2021.

“Every time you have your name called or in trade rumors, you get a little bit of a roller coaster rush where you don’t know what’s going to happen or if the trigger is going to be pulled,” Davis said on Wednesday after the trade was finalized. “This time around, I said that anything could happen, and I wasn’t too nervous about it or too anxious about it.

“If it happened, it happened. Fortunate, unfortunate, I got the call from [Mets GM Billy Eppler] and they made a trade and I’m excited and also a little upset that I have to say goodbye to some of these guys.”

After batting .288 with an .845 OPS over his first three seasons in New York, Davis batted just .238 with a .683 OPS as he struggled to adapt to the “ups and downs” of first-year manager Buck Showalter’s philosophies.

“I think it was more so of having a good game and not playing as part of a system that was over here,” Davis said. “It was that platoon system so I remember at the beginning of the year, that was kind of part of the system where Buck said to put your ego to the side. This team was driven and on a mission to win a championship and when you don’t play every day, especially how good this caliber, how good this league is, it’s very hard to get your rhythm going.

“Especially if you have a four-hit game or a home run and you’re not in the lineup for the next game or the next three games. It’s certainly difficult but at the same time I do my best to be a good teammate and help out other guys, give them advice. Whatever i”m seeing to make that transition and turn the page.”

More times than not, a trade around the deadline is met with dread by the player in question but for Davis, a move to the Giants provides a pseudo-homecoming for the 29-year-old from Elk Grove, CA, who will get to play with his high school teammate in pitcher Logan Webb.

“A little unfortunate to say goodbye to you guys but at the same time, selfishly a little bit, I’m excited for the opportunity to play over there, especially so close to home, being on the west coast, and just being grateful for the opportunity,” Davis said. “They’re a very successful organization. They’ve had some bumps in the road but they have a lot of good guys, a lot of good young talent over there.

For more Mets coverage like this JD Davis feature, visit AMNY.com